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THE SWEDENBORG LIBRARY. 



DOCUMENTS 



CONCERNING 



THE LIFE AND CHARACTER 



OF 



EMANUEL SWEDENBOEG ; 



ORIGINALLY COLLECTED 



By Dr. J. F. I. TAFEL, of Tubingen, Germany. 

TRANSLATED AND REVISED 

By Rev. I. H. SMITHSON, of Manchester, England. 



m ' 



^ 



^ ii 



KK-KUITEU AND ENLARGED 

By GEORGE BUSH, 

PnOFESSOR OF HEBREW IX THE XEW YORK UNIVERSITY. 




NEW YORK: 

JOIIX ALLEN, 139 NASSAU STREET. 

DOsrr'^ ■ ' CLAPP, SCHOOL 



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Snowden 4: Frail, Print. flO Vesey-st. 



SK*,^: li' "l, ' ^ f 



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present work has been delayed in its issue 
in consequence of the destruction of some of the forms by a fire which con si ^ 
the building where the printing was carried on. Fortunately the greatei* 
of the work had been previously struck off in another office, and was safc^^' 
the copy for two forms had to be supplied anew, which could not but oc( 
considerable delay. But even had not this accident occurred, as it was re- 
to publish the work complete, consisting of fourteen Nos., its appear in' 
not have been anticipated at a much earlier date than the present. W 
however, it will be found upon perusal to he intrinsically w^orthwaitii 
Some idea of its value in this respect will be gained from the Prefaces 
present edition. 

'* A more interesting volume," says the Intellectual Repository for June,® 
"containing so many well authenticated testimonies in illustration of tl 
and character of the venerable Swedenborg, can scarcely be imagined ; a^^ 
can easily conceive the effect which the perusal of this volume will hn^ 
the mind of the unprejudiced reader, who having become acquainted wi' 
theological writings of our aiathor, desires to know something of the li 
character of that extraordinary man. He will here find the testimonies ^^ 
most scientific men of the age, of prime ministers and counsellors of st^ 
kings and queens, of the most distinguished philosophers and poets, '^ 
most esteemed divines, not of one country but of several, all concur ^ 
demonstrate that the venerable Swedenborg was a man of unblemished ^ 
exalted piety and virtue, of distinguished eminence as a philosopher in'' 
every department of science, honored by the kings under whom he li^ 
one of the most useful members of the community, revered and loved b^' 
merous and respectable circle of aciquaintances in Sweden. Denmark. Ge 
Holland, and England. These testimonies also prove tliat, in the econoP' 
wise and merciful Providence; he was placed in an extraordinary pos ' 
which he could acquire information on the most important subjects reli 
wisdom, salvation, and happiness ; which information had hitherto be' 
eluded from the eyes of mortals; and that he shed a peculiar ]\mre or 
raomentous points of human intelligence, * which so many 
look into, but were not able * " 

The Editor's proposed absence for a few weeks will uecessarily po» 
next issue till about the first of November, when he will hope to renew tl' 
lication of the series and to bring out a number of new and interesticp,, 
illustrative, in one fcwm or other, of the distinguishing doctrines of" 



*4i 






lurcn.. The first in order will be a short treatise by Swedenborg " Concerning 
the Sacred Scripture or the Word of the Lord, from Experience." This is a 
translation from a manuscript copy left by the Author, and wliich does not ap- 
pear in any published edition of his works. It will make about 1 6 pages. — 
Announcements of the remaining part of the series will appear from time to 
time on the cover of subsequent numbers. 

Delinquent subscribers will allow themselves to be again reminded that pay- 
ment is due in advance for each of the volumes, and although this part of our 
list is much diminished, yet there is a considerable number to which the 
notice now given applies. 



The reprint of the " Apocalypse Explained" is rapidly advancing to a close 
The fourth volume is now nearly through the press. The fifth will be ready 
by the 25th of December. Subscriptions earnestly desired from all the friends 
of the Heavenly Doctrines. 



JUST PUBLISHED, 
AND FOR SALE BY JOHN ALLEN. 

Tracts for the New Times, No. HI. 

A POPULAR SKETCH 

OF SWEDENBORG'S PHILOSOPHICAL WORKS, 

READ BEFORE THE SWEDENBORG ASSOCIATION. 
BY J. J. G. WILKINSON. 




Also Nos. I and II of the same Series, viz., 

LETTER TO A SWEDENBORGIAN. 

SCIENCE FOR ALL, BY J. J. G. WILKINSON. 

Price 12i cents each. 



THE SWEDENBORG LIBRARY. 



I'onr i*oliimes of this work, 16 Nos. each, have thus far been publishc 
Their contents are as follows : — 

MEMORABILIA. 

No. I. General Introduction on the Character and Claims of Swedenborg. ' 
II. Nature and Quality of the Life of the Soul, or Spirit.— That every Man 
is a Spirit as to his Interiors. — That Man after Death is in the perfect Hu- 
man Form. — How the Soul subsists in the Body. 
Ill & IV. The World of Spirits ; or the state immediately succeeding Death 
What the World of Spirits is.— Concerning the First State of Man afi 
Death. — Concerning the Second State of Man after Death. — Concemii 
the Third State of Man after Death. 
V. Heaven, or the Nature of Heavenly Joy and Happhiess. — Farther Par- 
ticulars respecting Heaven and Heavenly Happiness, — Heaven con- 
stituted of Innumerable Societies. 
VI. The State of Infants in Heaven. j« 

VII. Of Memory in the other Life ; — That man after Death i8 in all SelJJP 
Memory, Thought, and Aifection in which he was in the World, ar 
that he leaves nothing except his earthly Body. 

VIII. Correspondences and Representatives in Heaven. 
XI. Correspondences and Representatives in Heaven (concluded). 
XII & Xni. Distinction of Sex and the Conjugal Relation in the other Life. 
XVI. The Process of Dying. 
XIX & XX. Of Hell and its Miseries. 
XXXf. The Light in which Angels live. 
XXXIII. Concerning the Speech of Spirits and Angels. 



SPIRITUAL DIARY. 
Nos. XIV & XV, XVII & XVIIL XXI & XXII, XXV & XXVT, XXXH 



EXTRAS 



No. IX — X. Reply to Mr. Emerson. 

XXIII— XXIV. The Last Judgment according !o the Doctrines of 

Church. • 

XXVII — XXX. Prof Bush's Statement of Reasons for embracing the 

trines and Disclosures of Swedenborg. 
XXXIV— XLIX. Reply to Dr. Woods. 
L. Hayden's Review of Dr. Pond. 
LI— LXIV. Documents concerning Swedenborg. 
Any of the above Nos. to be obtained separately of John Allen, N. Y., 
Clapp, Boston, at 6i cts. for every 16 pages. Subscriptions taken on the eaj 
terms. 




JEM^:^ HJIEIL SW^IElD]E:K^JB©m(&c 



DOCUMENTS 



CONCERNING 



THE LIFE AND CHARACTER 



OP 



EMANUEL SWEDENBORG; 



^ 



COLLECTED ^>, 



^ \ . ( ?. 



B Y D R . J . F ) T^T A F E L , 

OF TUBINGEN, GERMANY 5 



TRANSLATED AND REVISED 

By Rev. I. H. SMITHSON, 



^t'-^ td:^' --c^lAywu^, 



A NEW EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS, 

By GEORGE BUSH, 

PROFESSOR OF HEBREW IN THE NEW YORK UNIVERSITY. 



NEW YORK: 

PUBLISHED BY JOHN ALLEN, 139 NASSAU STREET, 

boston: OTIS CLAPP, SCHOOL STREET. 






^< 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, by 

GEORGE BUSH, 

In the Clerk's OfBce of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. 



Snowden & Prall, Print. 

GO Vesey-strePt. 









"►» V 



o 



AMERICAN EDITOR'S PREFACE. 



The work here presented to the public is in the main a reprint from an° English work 
of the same title, and which is itself a modified translation from the German original of 
Dr. Tafel of Tubingen. The ensuing Preface of Mr. Smithson, the EngUsh Translator and 
Editor, will sufficiently unfold the general character and scope of the work. It contains 
a large array of Testimonies, from the most authentic and respectable sources, to the 
talents, attainments, and endowments of Emanuel Swedenborg, a name which is constantly 
looming up to view, as one of the most truly venerable which can be cited from the list of 
the world's worthies. The deepening impression that this name has not had justice done 
it — that it has been allowed to remain for a long time under undeserved odium and dis- 
paragement — has naturally led to a reaction of interest in regard to the personal history, 
the intellectual monuments, and the supernatural claims, of the man. An ample biogra- 
phy would be the proper source to which to refer inquiry on these heads ; but such a bi- 
ography remains yet to be written. Meantime the materials are accumulating and a por- 
tion of them are embodied in the present volume. They will meet the demand of the 
times to a limited extent. They furnish a mass of memoirs sufficient to give assurance of 
a most extraordinary and highly-gifted character, and to afibrd a kind of prestige of what a 
complete biography of the subject of them would be. Testimonies of a similar stamp and 
from high authorities could be easily multiplied, as they are being continually elicited 
from those who have made themselves acquainted with his Scientific and Philosophical 
works through the medium of the recent Translations into English, for which the world 
is indebted to the invaluable labors of the London " Swedenborg Association." But the 
collection here set forth, made up of the most important documents accessible, will serve 
to accomplish the present ends of those concerned in their production. They will scarce- 
ly fail to redeem the fame of an illustrious sage from the reproach which has hitherto so 
unjustly befallen it. Still we cannot but be aware that the concessions made to his merits 
as a Philosopher may perhaps for a long time to come be withheld from his claims as a 
Seer, as this involves a verdict from the intuitions of the moral man which are at a great 
remove from those of the merely intellectual man. For the utterance of this verdict we 
must *' bide our time." From present indications that time is not far distant. There is 
obviously a deepening call issuing from the inmost bosom of humanity, for the great " prov- 
idential man" of the latter ages, and as we doubt not that he had come before being in- 
voked, our office is to pronounce the '' Ecce homo," and point him out to the recognition 
of the world. 

The present volume retains all the documents embodied in the English edition with 
the exception of the Rev. Mr. Clowes' " Affectionate Address to the Clergy," which can 
be easily obtained as a separate Tract. But in addition to these I have drawn freely upon 
other and more recent materials, several of which were kindly indicated to me by Mr. 
Smithson, the English editor, upon his becoming informed of my purpose. The articles 
that appear in the present edition, which are not found in the English, are those 



iv. ENGLISH EDITOR'S PREFACE. 

numbered (XXXII.) 1, 2.— XXXIV— XXXVII— XXXVIII— XXXIX—XL-XLI—XLII 
XLIII— XLIV— XLV— XLVI— XLVII— XLVIII, besides a few insertions of minor mo- 
ment in the earlier part of the volume. In some few cases the articles are not arranged 
in precisely the order into which they would most appropriately fall, but this was owing 
to various causes which the reader could not appreciate so well as the editor, and as the 
collocation is of comparatively little account, the reader will be satisfied to know that 
everything intended to be inserted is to be found somewhere in the volume. 

A few additional notes have been here and there inserted, which are indicated by the 
letter B. 

G. B. 

JTew-Yorky Sept. 20, 1847. 



ENGLISH EDITOR'S PREFACE. 



We here present to the English Reader the following " Documents concerning the Life 
and Character of the Hon. Emanuel Swedeuborg." They were collected and edited with 
great care in the German language by the learned Dr. J. F. I. Tafel, of Tubingen. As 
the theological writings of Swedenborg are beginning to be extensively read throughout 
Europe and America, a great call has been made for a Biography of this distinguished and 
enlightened author. These " Documents" were collected as materials to compose his 
biography, " but as (says Dr. Tafel,*) these Documents, when properly arranged, form a 
complete body of information, which can, with great propriety, be published by itself, I 
have thought it proper to present them to the public as a forerunner to the Biography 
iiself, to which I am now devoting all the time I can spare." 

With respect to the following work, the Editor begs to observe, that he has arranged the 
*' Documents" in a manner somewhat different from that adopted by Dr. Tafel, and that he 
has also added a few testimonies in favor of Swedenborg's writings from distinguished in- 
dividuals, such as Oberlin, the pious and celebrated pastor of Waldbach ; and the late 
Rev. John Clowes, Rector of St. John's, Manchester; also Swedenborg's Address in his 
senatorial character as member of the House of Nobles, to the Estates of the Realm assem- 
bled at the Diet in 1761. The arrangement which the Editor has adopted is as follows : 
he has placed those Documents first which contain the testimonies of individuals who 
personally knew Swedenborg ; secondly, he hns inserted those Documents, which testify 
most unequivocally to Swedenborg's intercourse with the spiritual world ; and thirdly, he 
has concluded the volume with letters and documents relating, either directly or indirectly, 
to Swedenborg and his important claims, as a theological writer, upon the attention of 
mankind. 

The Editor begs also to observe, that the " Introductory Observations, 4*c-" are printed 
from the English edition of Sandel's Eulogium, of which they form the Preface, and that 
the notes to the Eulogium, subscribed " editors,''^ are from the same edition ; other notes, 
subscribed " Tafel,''^ were written by that gentleman ; and for those to which no name 
is subjoined, the Editor is responsible. 

* See his Preface. 



CONTENTS 



Introductory Observations 17 

Part I. 

TESTIMONY OF PERSONAL FRIENDS AND ACQUAINTANCES OF 
SWEDENBORG. 

I. Sandel's Eulogium on Emanuel Swedenborg , 23 

II. Swedenborg's Account of Himself in a letter to his Friend the Rev. Thomas 

Hartley, M. A 36 

III. Testimony of the Rev. N. Collin, of Philadelphia, respecting Swedenborg 39 

IV. Testimony of the Rev. Thomas Hartley, M. A. respecting Swedenborg 43 

V. Testimony of Dr. Messiter respecting Swedenborg 44 

1 . Letter to Prof. Hamilton 45 

2. Prof. Hamilton's Reply 46 

3. Letter to Prof. Traill 47 

4. Prof. Traill's Reply 47 

5. Letter to Prof. Gerard 48 

6. Prof. Gerard's Reply 48 

VI. Testimony of Mr. Wm. Cookworthy respecting Swedenborg 49 

VII. Testimony of Count Andrew John Von Hopken respecting Swedenborg 49 

1. Letters from Count Hopken to General Tuxen 49 

2. Letter to another Friend 55 

VIII. Testimony of General Christian Tuxen respecting Swedenborg 57 

Letter of Swedenborg to General Tuxen 60 

IX. Testimony of C. Springer, Esq. Swedish Consul at the port of London, respect- 
ing Swedenborg 61 

X. Anecdotes collected by Mr. Robsahm, Director of the Bank of Stockholm, con- 
cerning the Life of Swedenborg when at Home 65 

1. Swedenborg's Letter to the King 71 

2. Anecdotes concerning Dr. Beyer and Swedenborg 75 

XI. Anecdotes of Swedenborg when in London, collected by Mr. Provo 77 

1. Lewis' Advertisement of Swedenborg's Writings 80 

2. First Reception of the Writings of Swedenborg — Letter of Mr. S. Penny 83 

3. Mr. Servante's Account of Swedenborg 84 



vi. CONTENTS. 

XII. Refutation of the false Report that Swedenborg, a few hours before his Death, 

had retracted his Writings 8' 

1. Letter of Mr. Hindmarsh . 8? 

2. Affidavit of the Shearsmiths 86 

3. Testimony of B. Chastanier SI 

XIII. Anecdotes of Swedenborg while in Holland 88 

1. Letter of Paulus ab Indagine 88 

2. Publication of the True Christian Religion 91 

Part II. 

TESTIMONIES TO SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD. 

XIV. The Queen of Sweden's Testimony concerning Swedenborg's Intercourse with 

the Spiritual World 93 

1. Remarks of Rev. S. Noble. . . 95 

2. Confirmatory Statement of Mad. de Marteville's second Husband... 95 
XV. Testimony of Captain de Stalhammer respecting Swedenborg's Intercourse 

with the Spiritual World . 97 

XVI. Testimony of the celebrated German Philosopher Emanuel Kant respecting 

Swedenborg's Intercourse with the Spiritual World 98 

Remarks by Rev. S. Noble 102 

XVII. Testimony of Dr. Johann Heinrich Jung Stilling respecting Swedenborg's 

Intercourse with the Spiritual World 104 

XVIII. Testimony of the Rev. John Wesley respecting Swedenborg's Intercourse 

with the Spiritual World , 106 

XIX. Refutation of the false Reports propagated by the Rev. Mr. Wesley 110 

Remarks of Rev. S. Noble 113 

XX. Testimony of the celebrated Oberlin respecting Swedenborg's Intercourse 

with the Spiritual World 114 

Part III. 

LETTERS AND DOCUMENTS RELATIVE TO SWEDENBORG'S 
GENERAL CLAIMS. 

XXI. Letters from the celebrated J. C. Lavater, of Zurich, testifying his admi- ™ 

ration of Swedenborg's Writings 120 

XXII. Letters from Swedenborg to Dr. Beyer, Greek Professor, and Assessor to 

the Consistory at Gottenburg, on various Subjects 123 

XXIII. A Declaration concerning the Doctrines taught by Swedenborg, by Gabriel 

Andrew Beyer, D. D .... . 127 w 

XXIV. Swedenborg's Reply to Dr. Ekebom's Deposition 145 

XXV. Swedenborg's Correspondence with Dr. Oetinger, Prelate of Murrhhard in 

Wurtemberg , 149 



CONTENTS. vil 

XXVI. Extract of a Letter from Dr. Beyer, to Dr. Oetinger 156 

XXVII. Swedenborg's Letter to Dr. Menander, Archbishop of Sweden 164 

XXVIII. Swedenborg's Letters to the Swedish Ambassador and to the Secretary of 

State .. 166 

XXIX. Swedenborg's Letters to the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, and to his 

Minister, M. Venator - 167 

XXX. Swedenborg's Letter to Dr. Wenngren, one of the Magistrates of Gotten- 

burg,. 170 

XXXI. Remarks by Mr. A. Nordenskjold, on the different Editions of the Bible 

made use of by Swedenborg , 171 

XXXII. Swedenborg's Address to the Estates of the Swedish Realm, at the Open- 
ing of the General Diet, of 1761 172 

1. Memorial to the Swedish Diet of the same year - 175 

2. Memorial respecting Finance 178 

XXXIII. Testimony of the celebrated Matthias Claudius respecting Swedenborg. . . 178 

XXXIV. Memoranda respecting Swedenborg by the late Mr. Peckitt 180 

XXXV. Remarks by the Marquis de Thome, on an Assertion of the Commissioners 

appointed by the King of France on the Examination of Animal Mag- 
netism 182 

XXXVI. Curious Memorial of Swedenborg concerning Charles XII. of Sweden. . . 187 

XXXVII. Testimony of Professor Gorres of Germany relative to Swedenborg's Scien- 

tific and Philosophical Character. 191 

XXXVIII. Letter of the Swedish Clergyman, Rev. Arvid Ferelius, to Professor 

Tratgard, in Griefswalde, respecting Swedenborg's End 195 

XXXIX. Testimony of Coleridge to the Literary, Scientific, and Theological Char- 
acter of Swedenborg ,. . 198 

XL. Letter from Swedenborg to the Royal Academy of Sciences at Stockholm, 

on the Hieroglyphics of Egypt 199 

XLI. Discoveries in Science made or anticipated by Swedenborg • . 200 

1. The Magnetic Element , , 201 • 

2. Foramen of Monro • 201 

3. Respiration of the Brain 202^ 

4. The Atomic Theory , 203 

5. Chemical Equivalents of Water 203 

16. Mention of a Seventh Planet 203 
7. Extract from the London Forceps . . 204 
8. Vitality of the Blood, . . , 205 

1 9. Science of Crystallography . 206 

/ 10. Invention of the Air-tight Stove . , , 207 

11. Identity of Electricity and Lightning . . - . 207 

XLII. Testimony of the celebrated Swedish Chymist Berzelius to the general 

Merits of Swedenborg's " Animal Kingdom"* .... .,..,...,. 208 



viii. CONTENTS. 

XLIII. Testimony of J. J. G. Wilkinson to Swedenborg's general Merit as a Man 

of Science and a Philosopher 20S 

XLIV. Extracts from the earlier Volumes of the London Monthly Review res- 
pecting Swedenborg's Theological Works 209 

1. The True Christian Religion 210 

2. Heaven and Hell 211 

3. The Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 213 

XLV. An Estimate of Swedenborg as the Expounder of the Good, the True, and 

the Beautiful, from a Swedish Periodical ,. 214 

XLVI. Testimony of J. D. Morell, of England, to the Rank due to Swedenborg 

as a Philosopher 218 

XLVII. Testimony of Ulrika, Queen of Sweden, and of the Celebrated German 
Savan, Wieland, respecting Swedenborg's Intercourse with the Spirit- 
ual World 224 

XLVIII. Extract from the Autobiography of Bishop Swedberg, Swedenborg's 

Father, respecting the Names of his Sons 230 

XLIX. Testimony of the late Rev. John Clowes, in favor of Swedenborg's Theo- 
logical Writings 231 



INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS, 

^ EXHIBITING 

THE CLAIMS OF THE WRITINGS OF SWEDENBORG TO 
THE ATTENTION OF THE PUBLIC. 



Respecting the celebrated Emanuel Swedenborg, the subject of the following " Doc- 
uments," &c., great misrepresentations have gone abroad, and have produced, in the 
minds of many, most false and injurious impressions, in regard both to him and to his 
writings. Let, however, any one take, as a sample of his writings, those in which he 
delivers the doctrines of the New Church, predicted in the Revelation, as he affirms, 
under the symbol of the New Jerusalem ; particularly, let the sample be his work en- 
titled, " On the New Jerusalem audits Heavenly Doctrine ;" or his " Doctrines of the New 
Jerusalem respecting the Lord, the Sacred Scripture, Faith, and Life /' let any one take 
either of these works as a sample : and if he had previously only heard the venerable 
and enlightened author spoken of as the deluded visionary and bewildered enthusiast 
he wiU be not a little surprised on its perusal. Instead of visionary statements and en- 
thusiastic flights, he will find the words of truth and soberness, under their most legiti- 
mate stamp: doctrines deduced in the clearest manner from the literal sense of the 
Word of God, arranged, as to their various particulars, in the most lucid order, and sup- 
ported by the strongest rational considerations. Let either of these works be perused 
with candor, and with the attention and devout seriousness which the subjects treated 
of demand, and which the mode of treatment merits ; and it is thought the reader must 
be disposed to admit, both that the doctrines which he delivers are truly the doctrines 
of the Word of God, and that the illumination by which they are so convincingly de- 
duced from that source must have proceeded from its Divine Author. Let it then be 
seriously considered, whether a writer who was thus, on the most vital points of Chris- 
tian doctrine, the organ of the dictates of truths could, on other parts of the same o-eneral 
system, be the victim of the illusions of error. 

There are various considerations, which, if duly reflected on, would establish the 
claims of this writer to the attention of the Christian world. It is generally admitted 
among Christians, that the prophecies of Scripture do lead to the expectation of a 
glorious state of the church on earth, — a state in which she shall be glorious for the 
clearness of her doctrinal views, and for the purity of her practice, — beyond anything 
which has hitherto been witnessed. Many commentators have seen, that such a state 
of the church is what is prefigured by the description of the New Jerusalem, in the 
Revelation, which is said to " come down from God out of heaven^' (xxi. 2, 10), and to 
be " the tabernacle of God icith men" (xxi. 3). This is the view of the meaning of that 
2 



18 INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 

prophecy taken by Swedenborg, and which is demonstrated by him with great force ol 
reasoning and the most conclusive Scripture testimony. If this be the true view of the 
subject, and if Scripture does indeed deliver the oracles of truth, this New Jerusalem, 
— this new and improved form of the Christian Church, — must begin to be manifested at 
sometime or other. The predictions respecting it cannot be allowed, by their Divine 
Author, to remain a dead letter for ever ; at some time or other they must be accomplished. 
And what times have ever yet arrived, at which their accomplishment might so reasona- 
bly be considered to be about to commence, as the times now present 1 A longer 
period has already elapsed since the first foundation of the Christian Religion, than has 
intervened between the first communication of any former dispensation of divine things 
to man and its modification by a succeeding one. Neither the Antediluvian Church, 
nor the Noetic, nor the Israelitic, lasted so many centuries as has the Christian church 
already. If then a new modification of this is ever to appear — if a New Jerusalem is, 
ever to form the tabernacle of God with men — the present age, as the probable era of 
its commencement, cannot be objected against on the plea of immaturity. If, also, it 
is reasonable to suppose that such an era would be marked by extraordinary signs, no 
era, assuredly, was ever more decidedly so marked than the present. For a long period, 
which does not seem yet to have entirely closed, the judgments of heaven have been 
abroad in the earth, in a more distinguished and more universal manner than has mark- 
ed any former age since the establishment of the Christian Church. The whole politi- 
cal and moral aspect of almost every country on the face of the globe, and particularly 
of every country where Christians have had influence, has been svirprisingly transform- 
ed ; and even the human mind itself, throughout, as far as is known, all the great 
families of man, has undergone a most conspicuous change. Is it not reasonable to 
suppose, that these wonderful occurrences may have been in part overruled, and in 
part produced, by the immediate agency of Divine Providence, with reference to the 
accomplishment of its purposes of mercy, in the establishment of the new dispensation 
of genuine Christianity, predicted under the figure of the New Jerusalem 1 — that judg- 
ments are proceeding to remove obstructions out of the way, and that beneficial influ- 
ences also are in operation to prepare for its reception % Most assuredly, the most de- 
cided opposer of the doctrines now proposed as those of the New Jerusalem, cannot 
deny, that if a New Jerusalem is ever to appear in the form of a New Church among 
men, no times wearing more of the character which may reasonably be expected to 
mark the era of its commencement have ever yet been known, and none can be rea- 
sonably looked for hereafter in which that character shall be more strikingly displayed. 

There is much, then, which gives an antecedent probability to the opinion, that, as 
the predictions relative to the new state of the Lord's Church among mankind, of which 
the New Jerusalem is a figure, must be fulfilled at some time or other, the present is 
actually the time appointed by Infinite Wisdom and Goodness for that purpose. But 
whenever the time should arrive, it is undeniably certain, that some individual or other 
of the human race must be enlightened to make it known. Whenever the superior 
clearness of doctrinal views, introductory to superior purity of practice, which, as all 
commentators admit, is at some period to constitute the pre-em.inent glory of the 
Church, should be communicated to bless her members, it is obviously indispensable, 
that some individual or other of the human race should receive the illumination neces- 
sary to introduce it. Some instrument or other, peculiarly enlightened, must be raised 
up for the purpose. If, then, it is not unreasonable to suppose that the present may be 
the time in which the Church, or state of the Church, represented by the New Jerusalem, 
is to commence, there is no absurdity in supposing that such an instrument for communi- 
cating her doctrines may already have appeared. The illustrious Swedenborg is be- 
lieved by many to have stood in this capacity. He most solemnly affirms it in various 
parts of his writings : is there any improbability in the belief, that he may have been the 



INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 19 

instrument whicli some man must be 1 A man who makes such an assertion either be- 
lieves it himself, or he does not. He who can make such an assertion without believing 
it himself, must be a supremely wicked impostor. But it is impossible to entertain such 
a suspicion in regard to Swedenborg : not only is there the most abundant external 
testimony to the innocence and sincerity of his character, but these are obvious from the 
whole of his writings themselves ; which not only exhibit throughout the purest senti- 
ments, but breathe in every line the writer's own entire conviction of the truth of what he 
says. In the assertion, tlien, which we are noticing, he only advanced what he most en- 
tirely believed. He who thus makes such an assertion, must either be completely de- 
luded, or the assertion must be true. But it will be impossible for any one who reads 
with attention either of the works, for example, which we have mentioned, to imagine 
that its writer was the victim of delusion. Not only are the views of truth which they 
exhibit so elevated and clear in themselves, as to recommend their own excellence to 
every lover of truth for its own sake, independently of all reasoning; but, as intimated 
before, the method in which they are arranged, the Scripture proofs by which they are 
supported, and the rational arguments by which they are illustrated, are all of so 
superior an order, as to evince in the writer the highest perfection of the rational facul- 
ties, and to render ridiculous in regard to him the imputation of self-delusion. There 
remains no other alternative, but that his assertion is true — that the doctrines delivered 
in them as those of the New Jerusalem, are really the doctrines of the New Jerusalem 
of prophecy — rays of that glorious light, which, as is generally believed, was eventually 
to shine in the renewed Christian Church. 

All the other works of this illustrious author will be found equally rational, when con- 
sidered apart from prejudice, and as the compositions of a man who had been specially 
enlightened to communicate the discoveries of Divine Truth necessary to be made at 
the commencement of the New Jerusalem. 

His theological writings may be divided into four general classes : we will here add 
a slight notice of the character of them all. 

We will consider his doctrinal works, as constituting the first class of his writings. To 
this class, then, appertain, (1.) The small volume " On the New Jerusalem and its Heav- 
enly Doctrine." This is a purely doctrinal work, embracing a great variety of subjects, 
but treating them with brevity, yet in the most luminous manner. (2.) The next of the 
author's publications of the same character, is the other work mentioned above, in 
which the four leading doctrines of all genuine religion — those relating to the Lord, the 
Scriptures, Faith, and Life, are copiously treated, and with a weight of evidence which 
most of those who have read them have found irresistible. (3.) In the " Brief Exposition 
of the Doctrine of the New Church," intended as an introduction to the work next men- 
tioned, the doctrines generally admitted both among the Romanists and Protestants are 
contrasted with those of the New Church, and their fallacies pointed out, in a very 
powerful and striking manner, (4.) His last work, the " True Christian Religion, or 
Universal Theology of the New Church, signified by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation," 
is, as its title implies, a complete body of divinity : it therefore embraces all the subjects 
which are treated of in No. 2 above, with many others, all which are elucidated at con- 
siderable length. That work, however, does not supersede the use of No. 2 : for the 
doctrines dehvered in No. 2, with the exception of that on the Sacred Scripture, are 
treated there in quite a different manner from that in which they are presented in the 
♦' True Christian Religion," though with the utmost harmony in the results. As intro- 
ductions, then, the three first-named works are all of great value : but whoever wishes 
to see all the subjects which properly belong to a body of Christian doctrine, treated at 
a length suited to their importance, established on copious Scripture testimony, and 
brought down to the apprehension by the clearest illustrations from reason and science. 



20 INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 

should study the " True Christian Religion.^^ Doctrinal points, also, are necessarily 
occasionally discussed, and sometimes largely, in all his other publications. 

The next and most extensive class of our author's works, is formed by those which 
are devoted to the exposition of the Scriptures, according to the principles explained in 
the *' Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture." Of these there are three : the " Arcana Cceles- 
tia," which is an exposition of the books of Genesis and Exodus ; and two works (one 
of them a posthumous publication,) on the " Apocalypse." In these works the spiritual 
sense of the books mentioned, and, incidentally, of far the greater part of the whole 
Word of God, is most luminously delivered and copiously illustrated ; the author's doc- 
trine of the existence of a Correspondence or regular Analogy between spiritual things 
and natural, which is such that the one answers to the other constantly and immutably, 
is demonstrated by such an abundance of examples as leaves it impossible to retain any 
doubt of the fact ; it is proved that the Word of God is written according to the laws 
of this Correspondence ; and the key which is thus afforded for the interpretation of 
Scripture is applied under the guidance of such evident illumination, that the pious 
and intelligent mind is delighted with the treasures of divine wisdom which are thus 
brought to view, and acknowledges that to mankind is now offered the blessing which 
the Psalmist prayed for, when he said, " Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold won- 
drous things out of thy law." 

A third class of our author's writings consists of works which are not strictly upon 
doctrinal subjects, nor yet directly expository of the Scriptures ; but which treat ol 
important questions in sacred metaphysics and morals. To this class belong, (1.) The 
volume on the " Divine Love and Wisdom ;" (2.) That on the " Divine Providence j^' 
(3.) The work on " Conjugial Love ;" and, (4.) The tract on the '* Intercourse between the 
Soul and the Body." The subjects discussed in these works, are all as interesting 
as they are important. They disclose, in a manner which has never before been at- 
tempted, the intrinsic nature of the human constitution, throw uncommon light on the 
great processes of creation, unfold as much of the nature of the Divine Being Himself as 
can be comprehensible to the human mind, and discover the laws by which Divine 
Providence acts — thus '^ justifying," incomparably more convincingly than was ever 
done before, " the ways of God to man." 

The fourth and last class of the writings of Swedenborg contains those in which he 
describes the nature of the life after death, and the state of man in the eternal world. 
It is from a misrepresentation of his writings of this class that Swedenborg is so often 
spoken of as a mere visionary and enthusiast ; though if the terms, visionary and en- 
thusiast, mean a person who dreams of things which have no real existence, and is carried 
away by the mere force of his imagination, a more false imputation was never thrown 
on the character of any one, than by the application of such epithets to the always calm 
and rational Swedenborg. Heaven and hell are doubtless real existences, howsoever 
defective may be our notions of their nature : and, most assuredly, nothing can with 
more reason be expected, than, when the superior light should be vouchsafed which 
Scripture teaches us was to accompany the dispensation of the New Jerusalem, of 
which it is said that *' the glory of God did lightenit, and the Lamb is the light thereof" 
(Rev. xxi. 23) ; and " there shall be no night there" (xxii. 5) — no intellectual darkness 
and lack of knowledge — that then the darkness which is generally allowed to prevail 
among Christians, in regard to the state of man in eternity, should be removed, and 
some clear and satisfactory knowledge respecting it should be supplied. When Dr. 
Jphnson was once told of a certain person who published a visionary work, in which 
ne stated, that, like the Apostle Paul, he had been " caught up to the third heaven," and 
had had " abundance of revelations," the witty dogmatist replied, " That he would 
have been more like the Apostle had he kept his revelations to himself" And this was 
a just observation. Had the Divine Wisdom seen that any specific information respect- 



INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 21 

ing the nature of heaven and hell, and man's state after death in general, would have 
been conducive to the welfare of mankind under the Christian dispensation, in that 
form of it founded by the Apostles, the Apostle Paul would doubtless have been per- 
mitted to communicate the knowledge which had been imparted to himself But this 
objection does not lie against the knowledge of the subject communicated in the writ- 
ings of Swedenborg, if to him it was really granted, as we have seen there is so much 
reason for concluding, to be the organ of imparting the knowledge necessary for the 
Christian Church under the new dispensation of it predicted by the symbol of a New 
Jerusalem. It would be strange indeed, if, amid the beams of light which are promised 
under this dispensation, not a ray shovild be afforded to chase away the dreary gloom 
which everywhere prevails, beyond its precincts, in regard to the state of man after 
death — if, in the glorious state under which it is generally believed that Christianity 
should at length appear on earth, no specific knowledge should even then be afforded 
respecting the nature of heaven and hell. It is, then, in strict conformity with the 
most reasonable expectations, that Swedenborg should have been enabled to clear- 
up this matter a:lso ; and to reject the information communicated through him, because 
it was not communicated to the Apostles, would be just as reasonable, as to reject the 
knowledge imparted through the Apostles because it was not as plainly revealed 
through Moses and the prophets. But his writings on this subject form much the 
smallest of the four classes into which we have divided his works. His treatise " On 
Heaven and Hell,'' and *' On the Last Judgment,'' are the only distinct and original 
works which properly belong to it ; for that " On the Earths in the Universe" is a mere 
republication of the appendixes to some of the chapters of the " Arcana Calestia :" but 
many particulars which come under the same description are given in appendixes 
called " Memorable Relations,"* to the chapters of the " Arcana Ccelestia," and the 
'* Apocalypse Revealed," among his expository works, of the " Conjugial Love," among 
his metaphysical and moral works, and of the " True Christian Religion," among his 
doctrinal productions. 

Those who may think the subjects of the above works interesting, but have not 
had any previous knowledge of the author, will naturally be desirous to possess some 
information respecting his station in life and personal character. This wish may be 
gratified by a perusal of the prefaces to those of his works which were first published 
in English; viz., the little work on the " Intercourse between the Soul and the Body,"\ 
the treatise " On Heaven and Hell," and the " True Christian Religion :"X in which 
also, together with the prefaces to the " Arcana Ccelestia," and to the *' Apocalypse Re- 
vealed," are contained very satisfactory vindications of his leading sentiments.§ 



* For a description of the nature of these " Memorable Relations" see below. 

t Translated by the Rev. Mr. Hartley, M. A., Rector of "Win wick, Northamptonshire, 
who was personally acquainted with Swedenborg. 

t Translated by the Rev. John Clowes, M. A., Rector of St. John's, Manchester. 

§ Several works expressly devoted to the defence of his character and writings have 
also been published, the principal of which are, " Letters to a Member of Parliament on 
the Character and Writings of Baron Swedenborg, in Refutation of the Calumnies of the 
Abbe Barruel," by the late Rev, J. Clowes, M. A., Rector of St. John's, Manchester ; 
"Letters to Dr. Priestly, fyc, being a Defence of the Nciv Church, fyc." by Rev. R. 
Hindmarsh; "A Vindication of the Character and Writings of the Hon, Emanuel Swe- 
denborg, against the Slanders and Misrepresentations of the Rev. J. G. Pike, fyc," by the 
same ; and " An Appeal in Behalf of the Views and Doctrines of the New Church, Sfc," 
by the Rev. S. Noble. See also a very able work by the Rev. Augustus Clissold, M. A., 
formerly of Exeter College, Oxford, entitled, " The Practical Nature of the Doctrines and 
alleged Revelations contained in the Writings of the Hon. E. Swedenborg, together with 
the Peculiar Motives to Christian Conduct they suggest, in a Letter to His Grace the Lord 
Archbishop of Dublin." 



22 



INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 



The first *' Document" which we shall adduce is of the very first authority, which 
gives a detailed view of his whole hfe and writings, including a list of those works by 
which he had gained a distinguished reputation as a philosopher, before, in the fifty- 
sixth year of his age, he received that particular illumination, which caused him, 
during the remaining twenty-nine years of his life, to employ his pen exclusively on 
spiritual subjects. The " Document" alluded to, is a discourse respecting the life and 
character of Emanuel Swedenborg, delivered in honor of his memory, before the Royal 
Academy of Sciences of Stockholm. 



PART I. 

TESTIMOi\Y OF PEKSONAL FRIENDS AND ACQUAINTANCES OF 

SWEDENBORG. 



I. 

EULOGIUM 

ON 

EMANUEL SWEDENBORG. 

Pronounced in the Great Hall of the House of Nobles, in the name of the Royal Academy 
of Sciences of Stockholm, October 7, 1772, by M. Samuel Sandel, Counsellor of the 
Royal Board of Mines y Knight of the Polar Star, and Member of the said Academy, 

TRANSLATED FROM THE SWEDISH. 



Gentlemen, 

Permit me to entertain you this day upon a subject, which is not of an ab- 
stracted or remote nature, but is intended to revive the agreeable remembrance 
of a man celebrated for his virtues and his knowledge, one of the oldest mem- 
bers of this Academy, and one whom we all knew and loved. 

The sentiments of esteem and friendship with which we all regarded the late 
M. Emanuel Swedenborg, assure me of the pleasure with which you will listen 
to me while he is the subject of my discourse : happy should I be could I an- 
swer your expectations, and draw his eulogium in the manner it deserves ! 
But if there are some countenances, of which, as the painters assure us, it is ex- 
tremely difficult to give an exact likeness, how difficult then must it be to delin- 
eate that of a vast and sublime genius, who never knew either repose or fatigue ; 
who, occupied with the sciences the most profound, was long engaged with re- 
searches into the secrets of nature, and who, in his latter years, applied all his 
efforts to unveil the greatest mysteries ; who, to arrive at certain branches of 
knowledge, opened for himself a way of his own, without ever straying from 
sound morals and true piety ; who, being endowed with a strength of faculties 
truly extraordinary, m the decline of his age, boldly elevated his thoughts still 
further and soared to the greatest heights to which the intellectual faculty can 
rise ; and who, finally, has given occasion to form respecting him a multitude 
of opinions, differing as much from each other as do the minds of the different 
men by whom they are formed ! 



24 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

When the riches and beauties of nature shine with the greatest briUiancy be- 
fore our eyes, then it is that we perceive most distinctly the shades which are 
inseparable from them. On the appearance of a new light, the man of mere 
curiosity sees nothing but marvels and miracles even in its illusions. The 
blockhead, on the other hand, turns all into ridicule : in his estimation, acute 
penetration is subtilty, deep thought is dreaming, abstract meditation is enthu- 
siastic reverie, to quit the beaten track is to go astray, and the investigation of 
unknown truths is sheer madness. The wise man is not so precipitate ; he does 
not despise a rich mineral, because it contains some heterogeneous substances 
which indicate its origin : he endeavors to discover the variations of the needle, 
not for the sake of exposing its defects, but that he may make the best use of 
this admirable guide : he values an inquiring eye, even when it ventures to 
direct a glance at the sun : he avoids excessive rigor, and takes care not to judge 
with harshness of an ardent and laborious zeal in the pursuit of truth : and none 
can find anything to censure in Swedenborg, unless it be that he allowed his 
genius this way to go too far.* 

It is thus that, notwithstanding some passages a little difficult to explain, the 
fair picture of his life well merits examination. 

The excellent Bishop of Skara, Dr. Jasper Swedberg, a clergyman full of zeal 
but free from bigotry, was still Chaplain of the first regiment of cavalry of the 
guard, when his first wife, Sarah Behm, daughter of Albert Behm, Assessor of 
the Board of Mines, brought him his second son, Emanuel Swedberg ; who was 
born at Stockholm, the 29th of January, 1688.t He was named Swedenborg, 
when he was elevated to the rank of nobility,^ together with his sisters, in 1719. 

Nature and art form the ornaments of the earth : birth and education form 
those of the human race. A fruit-seed does not always produce a tree which 
yields as excellent fruit as that which produced it ; which often is owing to the 
modifications effected in the tree by art, which occasion a difference in its pro- 
ducts, but do not at all alter its nature. Experience supplies us with a great 
many similar instances in our own species. But it would be hazarding a para- 
dox were we to attempt to determine, how far certain virtues are hereditary in 
families, or are introduced into them by education. Be this as it may, it cannot 

* From this it appears that M. Sandel did not belong to the number of those who 
had studied and appreciated Swedenborg's theological writings ; hence his testimony 
must be considered as so much the more impartial. — Tafel. 

t According to a letter of Swedenborg's, written in Latin and printed at London in 
1769, the year of his birth was 1689. But this is a mistake : for according to the note 
which he delivered in himself, to be inserted in the register of the Nobles, and which 
is in the hands of M. Stierman, Counsellor of the great Chancery, independently ol 
other proof that might be given, Swedenborg was born in 1GS8. As to the place of his 
birth, the register has Upsal ; but this ought to be Stockholm. — Note of M. Sandel. 

X From the fact of his having been elevated to the rank of nobility, an honor cus- 
tomarily granted to the families of the bishops, it has been generally supposed that he 
had a title, whence that of Baron is usually given him. But in Sweden there are noble 
families to which no title belongs ; and the male representative of families enjoys a 
seat in the House of Nobles, answering to our House of Lords, in the Diet or Parlia- 
ment of the country. Thus the privileges attached to this rank, are, in the head of the 
family, as Swedenljorg was at the time of his elevation to it, the same as belong to the 
lowest rank of nobility in England. In Sweden, exclusively of the princes of the blood, 
there are but three ranks of nobility ; to the lowest of which no title is attached, but 
only certain privileges ; to the second belongs the title of Baron ; and to the third that 
of Count. Thus the rank of Count, in Sweden, is equivalent to our Duke, that of Baron 
to our Earl, and the head of an untitled family enjoys a rank equal to that of our Lord 
or Baron. — Editors. 



I 



EULOGIUM OF SANDEL. 25 

be denied, that the advantage of having sprung from a respectable and virtuous 
family, inspires a man with confidence, when he is conscious that he does not 
disgrace his descent. In every condition, it is a real advantage to be born in a 
family, which has been, for long time, the abode of honor and virtue, and a 
nursery of citizens every way useful to the country. Such was that of Sw^eden- 
borg. 

Li a family of credit and respectability among the miners of Stora Koppar- 
berg,* Daniel Isaacson and his wife Anne Ballernesia, are distinguished as the 
parents of the first chiefs of the noble families of Sh6mstr6m and of Swedenborg, 
as well as that of the Swedbergs. I remember to have seen a genealogical tree, 
in which were represented many of the Swedbergs incorporated and allied with 
other illustrious and celebrated families. But since our Swedenborg did not 
assist to extend the branches of this tree, I will dwell upon it no longer, and will 
endeavor to follow himself only. 

In following him, the period of childhood and the exercises of that age can- 
not detain me long ; for, in him, everything tended to maturity. A son of Bishop 
Swedberg could not fail to receive a good education according to the custom of 
the times, and such as was adapted to form his youth to virtue, to industry, to 
solid knowledge, and especially to those sciences which were to constitute his 
chief occupation. Times and manners change : but I am speaking of the youth 
of a Swedenborg. What need is there to expatiate further upon the well-be- 
stowed cares which were employed on his education ; upon his eagerness to 
profit by such an advantage, which few men, comparatively, enjoy, and which 
so many of those who enjoy it neglect; upon the acuteness of his talents, which 
made the acquisition of knowledge easy to him, and cherished his excellent 
inchnations ; in short, upon his diligence and early maturity ? What more 
striking proof of them could be given, than the favor of a great prince, who, 
possessing a penetrating judgment, knew how to discover merit and talents, to 
encourage them by his bounty, and to employ them to the best advantage ? 

Without any solicitation on his part, he was appointed by Charles XII. at the 
age of twenty-eight years [in 1716], and when he was yet but a student at the 
University, Assessor Extraordinary of his Board of Mines ; and with leave to 
make his election between this office, and a Professorship in the Royal Univer- 
sity of Upsal. It is not upon an effeminate young man, destitute of talents, that 
an enlightened Monarch confers such employments. Swedberg was already 
known, both within the kingdom and abroad, for his learning and his great 
qualities. 

Among the number of his successful, though not always acknowledged youth- 
ful essays, is to be reckoned an Academical Dissertation, which he published at 
Upsal, in 1709.t 

* The great copper-mountain, near the town of Fahlun, in the Province ofDale- 
Karlen, the principal copper-mines in Sweden. 

t The subject of this dissertation waSj AnncEi SeneccB et Publii Syri Mimi, forsan et 
aliorum, Select<2 Sententice, cum Annotationibics Erasmi et ChrcBca Versione Scaligeri, 
Notis Illustratce. Swedenborg prefixed to this edition a dedication to his father a brief 
introduction, and accompanied it with notes. Immediately following the I>edication 
are some Greek verses addressed to Swedenborg himself, with the following inscrip- 
tion : — Ad prajcellentis ingenii Juvenem Emanuelem Swedbergium generis claritudine 
ac eruditionis gloria maxime conspicuum, cum in Mimos Publii Syri publica disser- 
tatione commentaretur ; with the inscription, Fv^r)\id6ris. 



26 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

A collection of Latin verses, which he had composed in 1710, and the follow- 
ing years, and which he published at Skara, under the title of " Ludus Heliconius; 
sive Carmina Miscellanea, qu(B variis in locis cecinit Em. Swedberg," displayed an un- 
common liveliness of talent, and evinced how well he had employed the studies 
of his youth. How proud would many be, had they been able to give, at such 
an age, such proofs of genius ! 

But poetry did not constitute his chief employment. The Essays and Re- 
marks on questions in Mathematics and Physics, which he printed at Stock- 
holm, in six parts, in the Swedish language (the fifth part being also published 
in Latin), under the title of Dcedalus Hyperboreus, and which were commenced in 
1716, evinced his taste for those sciences. May it not be said, that these pro- 
ductions of a young author gave reason to expect from him others whiclv should 
bear the stamp of a Daedalus ? 

But let us not estimate the strength of his genius merely by the productions 
of his youth which had yet appeared. It is not by the press alone that we can 
always judge of an author's learning. An indifferent work is often adorned 
with a pompous title : and the best authors are they who take sufficient time to 
furnish their minds with knowledge and with sohd principles. These attain- 
ments Swedberg first sought in the University of Upsal ; afterwards, during four 
successive years, in those of England, Holland, France, and Germany. 

But we have ta follow him in longer and more numerous travels, in diversified 
occupations and undertakings, and through routes often attended with difficulty. 
And in order that no reserve or apprehension may afterwards invade us, and 
make us hesitate at accompanying him any farther, as often happens when we 
have not had time to make ourselves sufficiently acquainted with a travelling 
companion beforehand, represent to yourselves in Swedenborg the happy union 
of a strong memory, a quick conception, and a sound judgment ; represent to 
yourselves these excellent qualities united to an ardent desire and encouraging 
hope of acquiring the most profound attainments in Philosophy, in all the 
branches of Mathematics, in Natural History^ in Mechanics, in Anatomy, and 
even in Theology : let us not forget his skill in the Oriental and European lan- 
guages : let us recollect the force of habit, acting in him in concert with the use 
of reason, especially in respect to the order in which he arranged his thoughts ; 
without a regard to which, when they are too much occupied upon abstruse 
meditations, they are apt to give themselves up, without distinction of Objects, 
to the fire of a too lively imagination : add to all this an excellent heart, as 
proved and formed by the rules which he had prescribed for his conduct, and 
which I have found noted down in several of his manuscripts, which are 
these: — 1. Often to read and meditate on the Word of God. 2. To submit every- 
thing to the will of Divine Providence. 3. To observe in everything a propriety 
of behavior, and always to keep the conscience clear. 4. To discharge with 
fidelity the functions of his employments and the duties of his office, and to 
render himself in all things useful to society. Such were the characteristic traits 
of Swedenborg's mind : and whoever thinks there is the least exaggeration in 
the delineation of them, must, in some shape or other, be the victim of prejudice. 
Let such consider more closely what I have already said, and what I have still 
further to say. 

Let us now hasten to receive him on his return home from his first travels, 



EULOGIUM OF SANDEL. 27 

when we shall find him occupied with Mathematics and Mechanics. His at- 
tainments in these sciences soon procured him an acquaintance, and an intimate 
connexion during many years, with the Archimedes of Sweden, Christopher 
Polhammar, then Assessor and afterwards Counsellor of the Chamber of Com- 
merce, and Commander of the Order of the Polar Star, and who was known 
afterwards under the name of Polheim. By this connexion he not only ac- 
quired great attainments in the science of Mechanics, but obtained the further 
advantage of partaking of the very particular confidence with which Polham- 
mar was honored by his late Majesty, Charles XII., and which was afterwards 
equally shared by them both. The diploma appointing him to his office of As- 
sessor, given at Sunden, the 19th of December, 1716, states, that the king had a 
particular regard to the knowledge possessed by Swedberg in the science of 
Mechanics, and that his pleasure was, that he should accompany and assist 
Polhammar, in constructing his various mechanical works. This diploma, 
together with all that is related by Dr. Nordberg, in his History of Charles XII., 
of the conversations that this monarch often had with these two great men, on 
Mechanics and other parts of Mathematics, evinces how much he esteemed 
these two geniuses, who seemed formed to assist each other, and destined to 
labor together. He often made use of their knowledge and talents ; which in 
both of them, especially on the subject of Mechanics, were accompanied with 
the gift of the most happy invention. 

This is not the place to speak of the great undertakings of Polheim : other- 
wise I should mention the famous dyke of Lyckeby, the locks of Trolhatta, the 
bason of Carlscrona, and other works executed by him. 

Of such works, Swedenborg, for his part executed one of the greatest import- 
ance, during the siege of Frederickshall, in 1718. He contrived to transport over 
valleys and mountains, by the help of machines of his own invention, two gal- 
leys, five large boats, and a sloop, from Stromstadt to Iderfjol, which divides 
Sweden from Norway towards the south ; that is to say, the distance of two 
miles and a half.* By this operation, the king found himself in a situation to 
carry on his plans ; for under the cover of these galleys and boats, he transport- 
ed on pontoons his heavy artillery, which it would have been impossible to 
have conveyed by land, under the very walls of Frederickshall. It is thus that 
the sciences and arts, judiciously applied, become universally useful, and effect 
objects, which, without their aid, no human power could accomplish. 

But Mechanics alone did not occupy all his time. In 1717 and 1718 he pub- 
lished the continuation of his Dcedalus Hyperboreus. In the latter year he print- 
ed an Introduction to Algebra, under the title oi Regel-Konsten ; in 1719, a Proposal 
for fixing the value of the Coin, and determining the Measures, of Sweden, so as to sup- 
press Fractions, and facilitate Calculations : and in the same year, a treatise on the 
position of the Earth and the Planets ; with another on the Height of the Tides, and 
the greater Flux and Reflux of the Sea informer ages,- with Proof s furnished by vari- 
ous appearances in Sweden. He had begun, at the same time, several other works ; 
of which we shall soon learn the particulars by advice from abroad. 

He had not yet taken possession of his office of Assessor of the Royal Board 
of Mines ; because he was unwilling to exercise the functions of it before he 

* Equal to about fourteen English miles. 



28 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

had acquired a perfect knowledge of Metallurgy : thus he is by no means to be 
ranked in the number of those, who, without capacity, solicit places, and have 
not the knowledge requisite for filling them. He had obtained this office with- 
out soliciting it. He was already well skilled in certain sciences, which alone 
would render him very useful in his situation : it was even very easy for him to 
acquire the knowledge in which, for this office, he might be deficient, since 
Mathematics and Physics, which he had hitherto made his principal studies, 
are the basis of the science of mines. But he could not be satisfied with theory 
alone without practice : nor was he any better satisfied with the experience 
which may be acquired in a chemical laboratory, nor with an acquaintance with 
the mines of Sweden only, and with the buildings, machines, and processes 
used in working them. He therefore, in 1721, undertook a second journey to 
foreign countries, to examine their mines and smelting- works, particularly those 
of Saxony and the Hartz. But we ought not to say that he went to examine 
their mines only : for of all that could fix the attention of a traveller, there was 
nothing that escaped him. 

During his stay in the country of Brunswick, the reigning sovereign, Duke 
Lewis Rodolph, gave him full liberty to travel in his dominions, and, at his de- 
parture, made him a present of his medallion in gold and of another in silver. 
In this journey he acquired new stores of knowledge, and enriched science with 
the following new works : — 

1. Prodromus Principiorum Rerum Naturalium, sive Novorum Tentaminum, Chemiam 

et Physiciam Experimentalem Geometrice Explicandi. 

2. Nova Observata et Invenia circa Ferrum et Ignem, prcecipue circa Natur am Ignis 

Elementarem: una cum Nova Camini Inventione. 

3. Methodus Nova Inveniendi Longitudinis Locorum Terra Marique, Ope Luna* 
To this work are appended — 

4. Modus Construendi Receptacula Navalia. 

5. Nova Constructio Aggeris Aquatici. 

6. Modus Mechanice Explorandi Virtutes Navigiorum. 
These works were all printed at Amsterdam in 1721. 

7. Miscellanea Observata circa Res Naturales ; prcssertim Mineralia, Ignem, et Montium 

Strata. 
Three parts of which were printed at Leipsic, and the fourth at Hamburg, 
in 1722.t 
If we except Linnaeus, who ever knew how to profit so well by a journey of 

* These three works have gone through three editions. 

t We subjoin a translation of the titles of the above works : — 

1. A Prodromus for Sketch and Specimen} of a work on the Principles of Natural Things, 

or New Attempts at explaining the Phenomena of Chemistry and Physics on Geometri- 
cal Principles. 

2. New Observations and Discoveries res2)ecting Iron and Fire, especially respecting the 

Elementary Nature of Fire. With a ncio mode of constructing Chimneys. 

3. A new Method of finding the Longitude of Places either on Land or at Sea, by Lunar 

Observations. 

4. A Mode for constructing Dry Docks for Shipping, in Harbors where there are no Tides. 

5. A new Mode of constructing Dykes to exclude Inundations of the Sea or of Rivers. 

6. A Mode of ascertaining, by Mechanical means, the qualities of Vessels of different Con- 

structions. 

7. Miscellaneous Observations on Natural Things, particularly on Minerals, Fire, and 

the Strata of Mountains. 



EULOGIUM OF SANDEL. 29 

so short duration ? For in 1722, after an absence of a year and a half, he re- 
joiced his country by his return. 

In the years succeeding he divided his time and his occupations between the 
business of the Royal Board of Mines and his studies, till 1733, when he finished 
his great work entitled Opera Philosophica et Mineralia.* It was published in 1734 
at Dresden and Leipsic; and while it was printing he visited the mines of 
Austria and Hungary — a journey which lasted a year. This worlt is in three 
volumes, in folio. The title of the first volume is, Principia Rerum Naturahum ; 
sive Novorum Tentaminum PhcRnomena Mundi Elementaris Philosophice Explicandi ; 
that of the second, Regnum Subterraneum sive Minerale de Ferro ; and that of the 
third, Regnum Subterraneum sive Minerale de Cupro et Orichalco.] These volumes, 
being solid and learned compositions, ornamented with plates to assist the read- 
er to understand the descriptions, &c. in the text, could not but add to the favor- 
able opinion that the learned of foreign countries had already conceived of our 
Swedenborg. 

The Consistory of the University, and the Academy of Sciences, of Upsal, did 
themselves the honor of being the first to acknowledge the merit of their illus- 
trious countryman, and to show him marks of their esteem. The Consistory, in 
1724, had invited him to accept the situation of Professor of the Pure Mathe- 
matics, vacant by the death of Nils Celsius ; and this, because, as they expressed 
themselves, his acceptance of the office would be to the advantage of the stu- 
dents and the ornament of the University. But he declined the honor. The 
Academy of Sciences admitted him into the number of its members in 1729. 

But the learned abroad now hastened to give him marks of their considera- 
tion. The Academy of Sciences of St. Petersburg appointed him a Correspond- 
ing Member, by a diploma dated Dec. 17th, 1734. Christian Wolff, and other 
foreign literati, were eager to establish with him a literary correspondence, and 
consulted him on many intricate subjects. The Editors of the Acta Eruditorum 
of Leipsic, which gives an account of the works of men of science and literature, 
found in those of Swedenborg a rich harvest with which to ornament their col- 
lection. Nor has time yet deprived his Opera Philosophica et Mineralia of any of 
their value. The authors of the magnificient Description des Arts et Metiers, now 
publishing at Paris, have thought so highly of the second part, which treats of 
kon and steel, that they have translated it, and inserted it entire in their col- 
lection, t 

* Philosophical and Mineral Works. 

t 1. The Principles of Natural Tilings; or of Neiv Attempts at a Philosophical Expla- 
nation of the Ph(Bnomena of the Elementary World. 

2. The Subterraneous or Mineral Kingdom in regard to Iron. 

3. The Subterraneous or Mineral Kingdom in regard to Copper and Brass. 

X The value of this work of our author's did not fail, also, to obtain notice in Eng- 
land. In the translation of Cramer's Elements of the Art of Assaying Metals, by Dr. 
Cromwell Mortimer, Secretary to the Royal Society, it is mentioned by the translator in 
the following terms : " For the sake of such as understand Latin, we must not pass by 
that magnificient and laborious work of Emanuel Swedenborgius, entitled, Principia 
Rerum Naturalium, fyc. Dresdas et Lipsise, 1734, in three tomes,'in folio : in the second 
and third tomes of which he has given the best accounts, not only of the methods and 
newest improvements in metallic works in all places beyond the seas, but also of those 
in England and our colonies in America, with draughts of the furnaces and instruments 
employed. It is to be wished we had extracts of this work in English." P. 13, 2nd 
Ed. Lond. llQ4^.~-Editors. 



30 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

This Royal Academy, on its first establishment, could not fail to associate 
among its members a man, who already held so distinguished a rank among 
the members of other learned societies. 

I have hitherto only spoken of one part of the works of Swedenborg : and as 
those which follow are of a quite different nature, it becomes necessary that we 
should yet dwell a little longer on these first. They are so many incontestible 
proofs of a universal erudition, which attached itself in preference to objects 
which require deep reflection and profound knowledge. None can reproach 
him with having wished to shine in borrowed plumes, passing ofi as his own 
the labors of others, dressed out in a new form and decorated with some new 
turns of expression. It must be acknowledged, on the contrary, that without 
ever taking up the ideas of others, he always followed his own, and often makes 
remarks and applications which are not to be found in any preceding author. 
Nor was he at all times of the same class as the generality of universal 
geniuses, who, for the most part, are content with merely skimming over the 
surfaces of things. He applied the whole force of his mind to penetrate into the 
most hidden things, to connect together the scattered links of the great chain of 
universal being, and to trace up everything, in an order agreeable to its nature, 
to the great First Cause. Neither did he proceed in the manner of certain Natu- 
ral Philosophers and Mathematicians, who, dazzled by the light which they have 
been in search of and have found, would, were it possible, eclipse and extin- 
guish, to the eyes of the world, the Only True and Great Light. He, in the 
course of his meditations on the universe and on creation, continually found new 
occasions for rising in love and adoration towards the Author of Nature. 

But let us suppose ourselves engaged in examining a grand machme, in the 
construction of which we had no concern : we see nothing of it but its results ; 
yet from its effects, with which even we are but imperfectly acquainted, we 
wish to judge of the whole. It will hence naturally happen, that every one 
will adopt such principles of explanation as appear to him most certain, and 
will endeavor thence to advance, step by step. It is thus that have proceeded 
our most distinguished scholars in theoretical philosophy. Happy are they, 
who, in their investigations of the most sublime subjects, have been the least 
unintelligible ! If, with the most profound knowledge, and with the greatest 
strength of intellect, they have not been able to avoid illusions and to attain the 
end proposed, they at least have struck out new paths for the exercise of our 
intellectual faculties ; one idea leads to another ; and thus they have opened the 
way to discoveries of greater certainty. Even the searchers for the philoso- 
phers' stone, if, after all their labors, they have not succeeded in making gold, 
have at least enriched chemistry with many valuable discoveries. 

I think I shall not be mistaken if I assert, that Swedenborg, from the time 
when he first began to think for himself, was animated by a secret fire, an ar- 
dent desire to attain to the discovery of the most abstract things ; and that he 
thenceforward thought that he had obtained a glimpse of the means of arriving 
at his end. I think I am justified in this supposition, on a comparison of his 
last works with his first, though they treat of very different subjects. 

He contemplated the great edifice of the universe in general. He afterwards 
examined such of its parts as come within the limits of our knowledge. He 
saw that the whole is arranged in a uniform order and governed by certain laws. 



EtJLOGITJM OF SANDEL. 31 

He took particular notice, in this immense machine, of everything that can be 
explained on mathematical principles. He doubted not that the Supreme Cre- 
ator had arranged the whole, even to the most imperceptible parts, in the most 
entire harmony and the most complete mutual agreement : and this agreement, 
as a mathematical philosopher, he endeavored to develope, by dravi^ing conclu- 
sions from the smallest parts to the greatest, from that which is visible before 
our eyes to that which is scarcely discoverable even by the aid of optical glasses. 
He thus formed to himself a system founded upon a certain species of mecha- 
nism, and supported by reasoning — a system, the arrangement of which is so 
solid, and the composition so serious, that it claims and merits all the attention 
of the learned : as for others, they may do better not to meddle with it. Accord- 
ing to this system, he explains all that the most certain facts and the soundest 
reasoning can offer to our meditations. If we dare not adopt the whole, there 
are at least many excellent things in it which we may apply to our use. But he 
went further : he wished to combine this system with religion ; and to this ob- 
ject he almost entirely devoted himself from the time of the publication of his 
Opera Philosophica et Mineralia. 

He passed the greater part of his latter years in foreign countries, to which, 
after the year 1736, he made eight different journeys; either to England, or Hol- 
land, or France, or Italy. He commenced with the latter countries : his travels 
in which lasted till 1740. His principal object in these journeys was the print- 
ing of his new works. 

I cannot help admiring the great fertility of his pen ; for besides the numerous 
productions, and especially the great work, of which we have spoken already, 
he w^as the author of the following : — 

1. Prodromus Philosophic Ratiocinantis de Injinito, de Causa Finali Creationis, et de 
Mechanismo Operationis Anirruz et Corporis. Printed at Dresden, in 1734. 

2. CEconomia Regni Animalis. Printed at Amsterdam, in two parts; the first in 
1740, and the second in 1741. 

3. Regnum Animale. In three parts ; two of which were printed at the Hague, 

in 1744, and the third at London, in 1745. 

4. Be Cidtu et Amore Dei. In two parts, London, 1745.* 

* The following would be the title of these four works in English : — 

1. A Prodromus to a proposed work, to be called, Philosophy reasoning on the Infinite, on 

the Final Cause of Creation, and on the Mechanism of the Operation of the Soul and 
Body. The work itself was never published under that title ; but those which fol- 
low treat of the proposed subjects. 

2. The Economy of the Animal Kingdom. 

3. The Animal Kingdom. 

4. On the Worship and Love of God. 

Though M. Sandel has numbered the above with the author's theological writings, 
Ihey do not in reality, belong to that class, though the subjects of some of them are 
closely connected with theology. The philosophical views they develope are mostly in 
harmony with those of his theological works ; and their theological sentiments also are 
seldom at variance with those of the latter, though they occasionally evince the absence 
of that superior illumination which he afterwards enjoyed. His particular illumination 
is stated to have commenced in 1743 ; if it did, the two latter of the above works were 
printed, and, most probably, were written, afterwards : but as their whole style and 
character differ widely from those of his theological works, there seems some reason to 
doubt whether the date of his specific illumination should not, instead of 1743, be 1745. 
Whilst, also, all his theological works abound with references to each other, they do not 
contain a single reference to the above or to any other of his publications, except once 
in the Index to the Arcana Calestiat where, under the word Caim, there is a reference 



32 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

1. Arcana Ccelestia. In eight volumes, London, 1749 to 1756. 

2. De Ultimo Judicio et Babylonia Bestructa. 

3. De C(bIo et Inferno. 

4. Be Equo Alho de quo in Apocalypsi. 

5. De Telluribus in Mundo nostro Solari, sen Planetisy et de Telluribus in Cede 

Astrifero. 

6. De Nova Hierosolyma et ejus Doctrina Ccelesti. 
These six works were all printed at London in 1758. 

7. Doctrina Novce Hierosolymce de Domino. 

8. Doctrina Novce Hierosolymce de Scriptura Sacra. 

9. Doctrina Vitce pro Nova Hierosolyma. 

10. Doctrina Novce Hierosolymce de Fide. 

11. Continuaiio de Ultimo Judicio, et de Mundo Spirituali. 

12. Sapientia Angelica de Divino Amore et de Divina Sapientia. 
These six works were all printed at Amsterdam in 1763. 

13. Sapientia Angelica de Divina Providentia. Amsterdam, 1764. 

14. Apocalypsis Revelata. Amsterdam, 1766. 

15. Delitice Sapientice de Amore Conjugiali; et Voluptates Insanice de Amore Scoria- 

torio. Amsterdam, 1768. 

16. De Commercio Animce et Corporis. London, 1769. 

17. Summxiria Expositio Doctrina Novce Ecclesice. Amsterdam, 1769. 

18. Vera Christiana Religio. Amsterdam, 1771.* 

The titles of these works announce matters of great importance : and though 
the subjects of thern are different, they are all founded on Anatomy, on Physics, 
on Philosophy, on explications of Holy Scripture, on certain revelations and 
visions ; and they all conduct us, according to his manner of treating them, to 
serious meditations respecting the Supreme Being, the soul, things invisible and 
spiritual, and the life hereafter. We thus now find soaring above the clouds, 
the same man whom we have just been following in the mines, in furnaces and 

to the Worship and Love of God .- but this single exception only seems to prove, that, 
while that work in general was not written under the same illumination as the author 
afterwards enjoyed, what it contains, upon the subject referred to, is fully in agreement 
therewith. On account of this decided distinction of class between the above four 
works of Swedenborg and the strictly theological writings which follow, we have not 
numbered them all in one series, as in the original, but have commenced a new series 
of numbers with the latter. — Editors. 

* In addition to the above, the following works, found among his manuscripts after 
his decease, have since been published at London and Tubingen : — 

19. Coronis seu Appendix ad Veram Christianam Religioncm. 1780. 

20. Summaria Expositio Sensus Interni Librorum Prophcticorum Verbi Veteris Testa- 
menti, necnon et Psalmorum Davidis. 1784, 

21. Apocalypsis Explicata secundum Sensum Spiritualem. Four volumes, 1785, 1786, 
178S, and 1789. 

22. Index Rerum in Apocalypsi Revelata. 1813. 

23. Index Verborum, Nominum, et Rerum, in Arcanis Ccelcstibus. 1815. 

24. Adversaria in Libros Levitici, Numerorum et Deuteronomii. 1841. 

There was also printed in 1784, a small posthumous work, or rather fragment, enti- 
tled, Clavis Hieroglyj)hica Arcanorum Naturalium et Spiritualium, per viam Representa- 
tionum et Correspondentiarum. But this does not properly belong to the class of his 
theological works, having evidently been written before he received his particular illu- 
mination, and apparently about the same time as his CEconomia Regni Animalis and 
Regnum Animate ; in. the former of which works the first sketch of the system is offered, 
and in the latter of which it is occasionally adverted to. 



I 



EULOGIUM OF SANDFX. 33 

workshops : and we find him everywhere equally diligent, zealous, and fertile 
in emblematical illustrations. . 

The applicationwhich the composition of these latter works required, not per- 
mitting him to continue to discharge the functions of his office as Assessor of 
the Board of Mines, he, in 1747, asked and obtained his Majesty's permission to 
retire from it : who also gmnted the two requests which he added to his peti- 
tion ; the first of which was, that he might enjoy, during life, by way of pension, 
the AaZ/of the salary attached to his office ; and the second, that this favor might 
be granted him without any addition of rank or title ; though these are things 
which by the generality are not deprecated but eagerly sought after, and equally 
regarded wiih the acquisition of riches.* 

These last works of Swedenborg's, as far as I have been able to judge of them 
from a slight inspection, confirm the idea I had previously formed of his system. 
He explains in them, according to the laws of the system that he had adopted, 
both things visible and invisible : from the former, he draws conclusionsf re- 



* We have here, indeed, a rare instance of that moderation and contentedness of mind 
by which Swedenborg was so eminently distinguished, and which was so truly in ac- 
cord with his spiritual cliaracter. In the English verson of this Eulogium heretofore 
published, he is made to desire that the favor he requested might be granted without 
derogation either of title or rank : but this is a strange oversight indeed of the translator ; 
for both the French copies — that of Pernetti, from which the former English version was 
made, as well as that which we have chiefly followed — here agree in the sense which 
is given above ; both state that he requested that the favor might be granted him " sans 
amelioration de rang ni de titre." Swedenborg had now held an office in the govern- 
ment thirty-one years : and no doubt it is customary in that country, as in this, to re- 
ward a faithful public servant^ on his retirement, with a pension proportioned to the 
length and value of his services, and to raise him to a higher degree of rank or title. It 
is elsewhere stated, that such an ofier was actually made to Swedenborg on this occa- 
sion : it was proposed to raise him from the first rank of nobility to the second, and 
thus to confer on him the title of Baron ; and, most probably, this would have been ac- 
companied with an addition to his former income, to enable him to support his new 
dignity in a suitable manner : but he, as a man for whom neither wealth nor power had 
any attractions, declined the title altogether, and requested that only half of his former 
income — ^just as much as was sufficient to keep him from want, and to enable him to 
publish the works on which he was engaged — ^mightbe continued to him. By the way, 
this transaction alone is sufficient to evince how totally unfounded is the report which 
has been propagated by his enemies in this country, that, a little before this time, he 
went mad. If such was, in reality, his unfortunate situation, it would be sufficiently 
extraordinary that he should still be permitted, in his own country, to assist, as usual, 
in the deliberations of the House of Nobles: but that it should be proposed, at such a 
time, to raise him to a higher rank of nobility, and thus to add to his influence, would 
have been extraordinary indeed. To think of such a thing, the king of Sweden must 
have been mad himself. — Editors. 

t This and the following statement of M. de Sandel is extremely superficial ; but a 
better judgment could not be expected from him, since, as he himself states, he had 
not studied and examined the theological writings of his venerable countryman. As, 
however, M. Sandel has given Swedenborg credit for the greatest sincerity and veracity, 
which he exhibits as the prominent features of his character, we cannot explain what 
Swedenborg has written on the spiritual world according to the principle stated by San- 
del " as conclusions drawn from things visible respecting things invisible." For Sweden- 
borg did not publish what he has written respecting the spiritual world as things con- 
eluded from what is visible, or the natural world, respecting what is invisible, or the 
spiritual world, but he published them as " matters of fact from what he heard and saw 
in the spiritual world." This he has declared in the titles of several of his works. His 
assertion was, that the Lord had mercifully opened the sight of his spirit, so that he 
could, in a state of perfetft wakefulness, associate with spirits and angels, and thus, from 
experience, he became acquainted with the nature of the spiritual world, its relation to 
the natural world, and the state of men after death. Every man, he states, has, in his 
material body, a spiritual body, for *' there is a natwral body, and there is a spiritual 
body s" (1 Cor. xv.) the organs of which are the only ground of all sensations, since the 
3 



34 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG., 

specting the latter : he represents to himself, in conformity with the world in 
which" we live, another and entirely spiritual world, in which, as in this, he ad- 
mits of degrees of perfection, an increase without end in the faculties of the in- 
habitants, a similarity and agreement of tastes and occupations, of conveniences 
and inconveniences, of pleasures and of pains. Strongly impressed with these 
ideas, he endeavored, in examining the Holy Scriptures, to combine them with 
his philosopical principles. Nevertheless, in describing spiritual things he has 
not been able to avoid the ideas inseparable from material existence. He tells 
us, however, that the whole is to be understood in a spiritual manner. This is 
a judicious caution : but is there not reason to apprehend, that when we trust 
too much to the imagination, we are in danger of falling into error ? I am led 
to believe that Bishop Swedberg, otherwise a highly respectable and learned 
man, was a little inclined this way. Several of his works seem to indicate it : 
at least, we may conjecture from them that he had a tendency to behold, in 
certain events, a species of prophetic indications. It is true that, in an ecclesi- 
astic, the defect of believing too much is preferable to that of believing too little. 
But it seems to indicate, that the case might be the same with his learned son ; 
who had, so to speak, inherited from his father that spirit of curiosity, with 
which he entered on the investigation of the objects which strike the senses, 
and of those which are beyond their sphere, and are even beyond the limits pre- 
scribed to the human understanding. 

T have probably dwelt too long on Swedenborg's theological works : these are 
not matters to be discussed in an Academy of Sciences. Suffice it then to say, 
that his merit and excellent qualities shine with brilliancy, even where we are 
endeavoring to discover in him the weakness inseparable from human nature. 
I do not come here to defend errors or unintelligible principles : but I will ven-1 
ture to assert — and I reckon, gentlemen, on meeting your approbation in the as-- 
sertion — that where others would have discovered a deficiency of intelligence 
and a confusion of ideas, Swedenborg has displayed an astonishing assemblage 
of knowledge; which he has arranged, according to his system, in such order, 

material body in itself has no sensation, but is only the instrument by which the spirit, 
that is, the man himself, has communication with the material world. In the spiritual 
world the spiritual body sees, hears, feels, &c., in short, is in the perfect enjoyment of 
all the senses in a far more exquisite degree than in the material body. These spiritu- 
al organs can, when it pleases the Lord, be opened before death, and man then can 
come into communication with spirits and angels and see the objects of the spiritual 
Avorld, all of which, as being from the sun of the spiritual world', are not material, but 
substantial. Thus, the spiritual sight of the prophets and apostles was opened when 
they saw, in vision, the things they describe, as Zechariah, Ezekiel, Daniel, &c., and 
especially John in the Apocalypse ; all the objects they saw were not material but spir- 
itual, for there B.re spiritual substances as well as material'; but spiritual objects are not, 
like material objects, subject to mechanical and chemical laws, nor to the conditions of 
time and space, but they are subject to pure spiritual laws, and precisely correspond to 
the states of the spiritual inhabitants, and thus represent the state of their affections and 
thoughts, of their real life, whether good or evil. What, therefore, Swedenborg de- 
scribes ZiS facts concerning the spiritual world and the states of departed spirits must not 
be considered, according to M. Sandel's supposition, as conclusions drawn from visible, 
or material things respecting invisible or spiritual things, but as realities perceived in 
spiritual light by his spiritual senses, and communicated to the world to promote the 
wisdom, happiness, and salvation of mankind. The things, which Swedenborg de- 
scribes as facts and realities, which he heard and saw in the spiritual world, will bo 
seen attested and proved by the examination and testimony of the celebrated German 
philosopher, Kant, and others equally worthy of credit, which will be adduced farther 
on.-^Tafd. 



EULOGIUM OF.SANDEL. 35 

that the elements themselves would have striven in vain to turn him out of his 
course. If his desire of knowledge went too far, it at least evinces in him an 
ardent desire to obtain information himself and to convey it to others: for you 
never find in him any mark of pride or conceit, of rashness, or of intention to 
deceive. If, nevertheless, he is not to be numbered among the doctors of the 
church, he at least holds an honorable rank among sublime moralists, and 
deserves to be instanced as a pattern of virtue and of respect for his Creator. 

Never did he allow himself to have recourse to dissimulation; and since, fol- 
lowing his example, I also ought to speak with sincerity, 1 will state in what 
respect I conceive he has erred. I think of a man who has been engaged all his 
life in preparing a universal solvent — a menstruum capable of dissolving all the 
productions of nature and of art — without ever considering, that, when he had 
succeeded in making it, no vessel whatever could be capable of containing it. 
Swedenborg was not satisfied with the usual attainments of the learned : he 
wished to pass the barriers which are opposed to man's acquirements by the im- 
perfection of his state, especially while the soul is tied to its frail partner, the 
body. But it would be unjust to blame him for this defect, without more 
severely condemning those whose duty it is to know much, and who yet know 
nothing. And still it would be inequitable to wish to depreciate a man endow- 
ed with so many other fine qualities. 

He was the sincere friend of mankind ; and in his examination of the charac- 
ter of others, he was particularly desirous to discover in them this virtue, which 
he regarded as an infallible proof of the presence of many more. He was cheer- 
ful and agreeable in society. By way of relaxation from his important labors, 
he sought and frequented the company of persons of information, by whom he 
was always well received. He knew how to check opportunely, and with 
great address, that species of wit which would indulge itself at the expense of 
serious things. As a public functionary, he was upright and just : while he dis- 
charged his duties with great exactness, he neglected nothing but his own ad- 
vancement. Having been called, without solicitation on his part, to a distin- 
guished post, he never sought any further promotion. When his private occu- 
pations began to encroach upon the time required for the functions of his office, 
he resigned it, and remained content with the title which he had borne while 
exercising it for one-and-thirty years. 

He was a worthy member of this Royal Academy ; and though before his ad- 
mission into it he had been engaged with subjects different from those which it 
cultivates, he was unwilling to be an unuseful associate. He enriched our 
Memoirs with an article 07i Inlaid Work in Marble, for Tables^ and for other Orna- 
ments. 

As a member of the Equestrian Order of the House of Nobles he took his seat 
in several of the Diets of the Realm ; in which his conduct was such as to 
secure him both from the reproaches of his own conscience and from those of 
others.* He lived under the reigns of many of our sovereigns, and enjoyed the 

* Iq a letter of Count Hopken's, who had been for many years Prime Minister of 
Sweden, published in the Neio Jerusalem Magazine, printed in 1790, that nobleman 
states, that the most solid and best written memorials on the state of the finances, pre- 
sented at the Diet of 1761, were drawn up by Swedenborg ; in one of which he refuted 
a quarto volume on the subject, citing from it the corresponding passages, in the com- 
pass of a single sheet. This letter is adduced below. — Editors. 



36 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

particular favor and kindness of them all; an advantage which virtue and 
science will ever enjoy under an enlightened government : and what people is 
more happy in this respect than are we ? 

Swedenborg (and this I mention without intending to make a merit of it,) was 
never married. This was not however owing to any indifference towards the 
sex: for he esteemed the company of a fine and intelligent woman as one of the 
most agreeable of pleasures : but his profound studies rendered expedient for him 
the quiet of a single life. It may be truly said, that he was solitary, but never 
sad. 

He always enjoyed most excellent health, having scarcely ever experienced 
the slightest indisposition.* Content within himself, and with his situation, his 
life was, in all respects, one of the happiest that ever fell to the lot of man, till 
the very moment of its close. During his last residence in London, on the 24th 
of December, last year, he had an attack of apoplexy; and, nature demanding 
her rights, he died on the 29th of March in the present year [1772], in the eighty- 
fifth year of his age ; satisfied with his sojourn on garth, and delighted with the 
prospect of his heavenly metamorphosis. 

May this Royal Academy retain as long, a great number of such distinguished 
and useful members ! 



Thus the Chevalier closes his oration ; on which it is needless to add any remarks to 
those which we have offered above in our introductory observations. It evinces, beyond 
all possibility of contradiction, that Swedenborg was distinguished by all the virtues, 
abilities, and attainments, that can shed a lustre on the character of man; and that, 
notwithstanding his theological writings must have caused him, with many, to be re- 
garded with suspicion, he retained among his countrymen the respect of those who knew 
him best — of men distinguished both by rank and learning — till the last. It evinces, in 
short, that his whole character and conduct were in the fullest accord with the state- 
ments of his writings ;~that if the statements of his writings are true, his character and 
conduct were such as to authenticate and sustain them. His writings thus come to the 
reader with every possible claim to attention ; it is from the investigation of them that he 
must finally form his conclusions. 



II, 

SWEDENBORG'S ACCOUNT OF HIMSELF; 

IN A LETTER TO HIS FRIEND, 

THE REV. THOMAS HARTLEY, M. A., 

RECTOR OF WINWICK, IN NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, 



The next account we shall adduce in regard to Swedenborg, is that which he gives of 
himself in a letter to his friend, the Rev. T. Hartley, M.A., Rector of Winwick, in 
Northamptonshire, who, having met with some of Swedenborg's works, sought an ac- 

* How inconsistent is this with the story which has been invented and propagated in 
this country, that he was once attacked with a most violent fever, attended with deli- 
rium, from the effects of which he never recovered ! In Sweden, where his personal 
history must have been best known, nothing, it seems, of the kind was ever heard of. — 
Editors. 



LETTER TO THE REV. T. HARTLEY. 37 

quaintance with their author, and was admitted by him to his intimate friendship. Mr. 
Hartley has left his testimony respecting him, which we shall adduce below. The fol- 
lowing- letter was written by Swedenborg to Mr. Hartley, in reply to one which that 
gentleman had sent him, requesting that he would leave, in his hands, some account of 
himself, of his family and connexions :* — 

'• My Dear Friend, 

" I take pleasure in the friendship you express for me in your letter, and re- 
turn you sincere thanks for the same : but as to the praises which you bestow 
upon me, I only receive them as tokens of your love of the truths contained in 
my writings, and so refer them to the Lord our Saviour, from whom is all truth, 
because he is the Truth (Jolm xiv. 6). It is the concluding part of your letter 
that chiefly engages my attention, where you say as follows : ' As after your 
departure from England disputes may arise on the subject of your writings, and 
so give occasion of defending their author against such false reports and asper- 
sions as they who are no friends to truth may invent to the prejudice of his char- 
acter, may it not be of use, in order to refute any calumnies of that kind, that 
you leave in my hands some short account of yourself; as concerning, for ex- 
ample, your degrees in the university, the offices you have borne, your family 
and connexions, the honors which I am told have been conferred upon you, and 
such other particulars as may serve to the vindication of your character, if at- 
tacked ; that so any ill-grounded prejudice may be obviated or removed ? For 
where the honor and interest of truth are concerned, it certainly behoves us to 
employ all lawful means in its defence and support.' After reflecting on the 
foregoing passage, I was induced to comply with your friendly advice, by briefly 
communicating the following circumstances of my life : — 

"I was born at Stockholm, in the year 1 689, f Jan. 29th. My father's name 
was Jesper Swedberg ; who was bishop of West-Gothland, and a man of celeb- 
rity in his time. He was also elected a member of the [English] Society for the 
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts ; for he had been appointed by King 
Charles XII., as bishop over the Swedish churches in Pennsylvania and London. 
In the year 17101 began my travels ; first going to England, and thence to Hol- 
land, France and Germany ; whence I returned home in 1714. In the year 1716, 
and afterwards, I had many conversations with Charles XII. King of Sweden, 
who was pleased to bestow on me a large share of his favor, and in that year 
appointed me to the office of Assessor of the Metallic College ; in which I con- 
tinued till the year 1747, when I resigned it; but I still retain the salary annexed 
to it, as an appointment for life. My sole view in this resignation was, that I 
might be more at liberty to devote myself to that new function to which the 
Lord hath called me. On my resigning my office, a higher degree of rank was 
offered me : but this I utterly declined, lest it should be the occasion of inspiring 
me with pride. In 1719, 1 was ennobled by Queen Ulrica Eleonora, and named 
Swedenborg .• from which time I have taken my seat with the Nobles of the 
Equestrian Order in the Triennial Assemblies of the States of the Realm . I am a 
Fellow, by invitation, of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Stockholm : but I 

* The original Latin may be seen in a former periodical pubhcation called the Aurora, 
vol. ii. p. 224. 
t It has been ascertained that this should be 1688. See above p. 24. 



3S DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

have never sought admission into any other literary Society, as I belong to an 
angelic society, wherein things relating to heaven and the soul are the only sub- 
jects of discourse and entertainment ; whereas the things which occupy the at- 
tention of our literary societies are such as relate to the world and the body. In 
the year 1734, 1 published, at Leipsic, the Regnum Minerale, in three vols, folio 5 
and in 1738, 1 took a journey into Italy, and staid a year at Venice and Rome. 

" With respect to my family-connexions, I had four sisters. One of them was 
married to Eric Benzelius, afterwards promoted to the Archbishop rick of Upsal : 
and thus I became related to the two succeeding Archbishops of that See, both 
named Benzelius, and younger brothers of the former. My second sister was 
married to Lars Benzelstierna, who was promoted to a provincial government. 
But all these are dead : however, two bishops who are related to me are still 
living : one of them, named Filenius, is Bishop of East- Gothland, and now offi- 
ciates as President of the Ecclesiastical Order in the Diet at Stockholm, in the 
room of the Archbishop, who is infirm ; he married my sister's daughter : the 
other, named Benzelstierna, is Bishop of Westermania and Dalecarlia ; he is the 
son of my second sister. Not to mention others of my relations who enjoy sta- 
tions of dignity. I live, besides, on terms of familiarity and friendship with all 
the bishops of my country, who are ten in number ; as also with the sixteen 
senators, and the rest of the nobility ; for they know that I am in fellowship 
with angels. The king and queen also, and the three princes their sons, show 
me much favor : I was once invited by the king and queen to dine at their table 
— an honor which is in general granted only to the nobility of the highest rank ; 
and likewise, since, with the hereditary prince. They all wished for my return 
home : so far am I from being in any danger of persecution in my own country, 
as you seem to apprehend, and so kindly wish to provide against; and should 
anything of the kind befal me elsewhere, it cannot hurt me. 

" But I regard all that T have mentioned as matters of respectively little mo- 
ment ; for, what far exceeds them, I have been called to a holy office by the 
Lord himself, who most graciously manifested himself in person to me, his ser- 
vant, in the year 1743; when he opened my sight to the view of the spiritual 
world, and granted me the privilege of conversing with spirits and angels, which 
I enjoy to this day. From that time I began to print and publish various arcana 
that have been seen by me, or revealed to me ; as respecting heaven and hell, 
the state of man after death, the true v/orship of God, the spiritual sense of the 
Word ; with many other most important matters conducive to salvation and 
true wisdom. The only reason of my latter journeys to foreign countries, has 
been the desire of being useful, by making known the arcana entrusted to me. 

*' As to this world's wealth, I have what is sufficient, and more I neither seek 
nor wish for.* 

" Your Letter has drawn the mention of these things from me, with the view, 
as you suggest, that any ill-grounded prejudices may be removed — Farewell ; 
and from my heart I wish you all felicity both in this world and the next ; 
which I make no doubt of your attaining, if you look and pray to our Lord. 

" Eman. Swedenborg. 
"London, 1769." 

* This remark is an answer to an offer by Mr. Hartley, to supply him with money* 
should he have occasion for it. 



TESTIMONY OF THE REV. N. COLLIN. 39 

Now if the writer of this letter really was invested with the character he assumes, 
could anything be more suited to that character than the whole of its contents! Does 
not every sentence and expression in it bespeak the truly humble, pious, and heavenly- 
minded man 1 Could any one who falsely pretended to what the author professes, 
write of himself in a manner so perfectly in accord with the pretensions assumed 1 
Would it be possible for an impostor, whether hypocritical or self-deluded, to assume 
that air of genuine simplicity, inward composure, and unfeigned contentedness, which 
reigns throughout the whole 1 



III. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

THE REV. N. COLLIN, OF PHILADELPHIA, 

RESPECTING 

SVV'EDENBORG. 



"We next adduce a confirmation of the statements in the above letter, together with a 
comment on its contents, by the Rev. Nicholas Collin, Rector of the Swedish Church in 
Philadelphia. This gentleman did not profess the sentiments of Swedenborg : but in 
the year 1801, when, in conseqixence of the adoption of those sentiments by many in 
America, the character and life of Swedenborg had there become the subject, as he 
states, of "frequent and sedulous inquiries," he published the above letter of his illus- 
trious countryman, with a comment of his own, in the Philadelphia Gazette of August 
5th, 8th and 10th. It was reprinted in the New Jerusalem Church Repository/, published at 
Philadelphia in 1817, at which time Mr. C. was still performing the duties of pastor of 
the Swedish church in that city. Mr. Collin was well qualified to give authentic infor- 
mation, having, when a very young man, lived three years at Stockholm, when, as he 
says, *' Swedenborg was a great object of public attention in that metropolis, and his 
extraordinary character was a frequent topic of discussion. Not seldom he appeared 
in public, and mixed in private societies ; therefore, sufiicient opportunities were given 
to make observations on him." 

The comment begins thus : — 

" His family connexions were such as he relates, and well known in Sweden; 
some of them by myself personally ; particularly Bishop Benzelstierna. The 
mention of his father, being, though honorable, modestly short, I shall enlarge 
upon it. This Jesper Swedberg was well qualified for one of the principal 
Bishopricks in Sweden, by his piety, learning, integrity, benevolence, and all 
other virtues. His plain manner of living enforced his zealous remonstrances 
against pomp and luxury, which, if not very common, yet were the more per- 
nicious in that distressful period, when Sweden had lost her veteran armies, 
depended in a great measure on lads and old men for the combined forces of 



40 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

Russia, Poland and Denmark, and was moreover consuming by famine and 
pestilence. The bishop's influence animated that patriotic fortitude, which 
sustained such burthens and misery, and blazed in so many battles ! His popu- 
larity gave particular energy to some public regulations, whic h lessened the 
havoc of pestilence : a judicious and pathetic address to the people convinced 
them, that interring in new grounds was a necessary measure, though a tempo- 
rary sacrifice to their laudable attachment to the consecrated grounds in which 
the earthly remains of their beloved relatives reposed. The bishop was for 
many years superintendent of the Swedish mission about Delaware. His letters 
to the clergy and the congregations, which are preserved on his records, bear 
witness to his zeal, kindness, and love of science. He requested of the mis- 
sionaries to inform him of any extraordinary events, in the moral and physical 
world, which happened in these parts of America. Some of these relations are 
recorded : one I find less credible, but founded on popular belief, and in part on 
some very remarkable facts. As this excellent man has been charged with a 
fondness for the marvellous, and the same foible is imputed as hereditary to the 
son, I will candidly mention the only fact within my knowledge, which may 
be so construed : a female head-dress, called in French fontange, made up of 
laces or ribbons to a monstrous height of several stages, had long been an ob- 
ject of his indignation. In a parish of his diocese, a female still-born child had 
a monstrous excrescence on its head, very similar to this ornament of the ladies. 
He regarded this as an ominous commination from heaven against the sinful 
vanity, and published a very spirited poem, with a drawing of the hideous 
forms. Those who sarcastically criticise this, ought, however, to reflect, that 
the most learned physiologists cannot yet decide what efiect monstrous figures 
may, by affecting the mother, produce on the unborn babe. Certain it was, that 
the bishop struck a death-blow to many thousand fontangcs, and so far saved 
many fathers and husbands from expense and vexation. 

" Swedenborg is silent on the merits of his youth, which were great. The 
author of a dissertation on the Royal Society of Sciences at Upsal, published in 
1789, mentions him as one of its first and best members, thus: ' His letters to the 
Society ^vhile abroad, witness that few can travel so usefully. An indefatigable 
curiosity directed to various important objects, is conspicuous in all. Mathe- 
matics, astronomy, and mechanics seem to have been his favourite sciences, 
and he had already made great progress in these. Everywhere he became ac- 
quainted with the most renowned mathematicians and astronomers, as Flam- 
stead, Delahire, Varignon, &c. This pursuit of knowledge was also united with 
a constant zeal to benefit his country. No sooner was he informed of some 
useful discovery, than he was solicitous to render it beneficial to Sweden, by 
purchase, or sending home models. When a good book was published, he not 
only gave immediate notice of it, but contrived to procure it for the library of 
the university.' 

" That Swedenborg, on his return, was honored by frequent conversations 
with Charles the Xllth, may well be believed by all who knew the real charac- 
ter of that king : he was not a mere warrior, but fond of useful sciences, though 
impeded from their promotion by a long unremitted warfare, which was indeed, 
after the defeat at Pultowa, a necessary struggle for the independence of his 
country. He had also acquired some knowledge of the Mathematics, and used. 



TESTIMONY OF THE REV. N. COLLIN- 41 

at leisure hours, to amuse himself and his officers with the solution of prob- 
lems. 

" Swedenborg composed an Algebra in the Swedish language, published in 
1718. His Regnum Minerale, which he mentions, is well known, and may be 
seen in the library of Philadelphia. The office of Counsellor in the Metallic 
College was conferred on him by King Charles, as a reward for knowledge ac- 
quired by the labors of youth, and a means of making it very beneficial to the 
nation : that Board having inspection over the mines and metallic works, so im- 
portant in that country, and being a constitutional department of the govern- 
ment. 

" Swedenborg asserts with truth, that he was in favor with the royal family, 
and generally respected by the first classes. This was due to his learning and 
excellence of character. The then queen, Louisa Ulrica, sister of Frederic, 
the celebrated king of Prussia, had extraordinary talents and literary acquisi- 
tions. She patronized the arts and sciences in Sweden. Her large and ex- 
cellent library, wliich I have seen, employed much of her time. Gustavus her 
son, then hereditary prince, afterv/ards king, was distinguished by his talents 
and promotion of the sciences, both useful and ornamental. The prelates and 
others of the clergy, many of whom were his relatives and friends, honored him 
on the same ground, being themselves scholars and well-bred persons. He 
could therefore assure his friend that he was in no danger of persecution; be- 
sides, the National Church has never been severe ; and liis works were at that 
time in the Latin language, beyond the reach of the common people. I must, 
however, observe, that but few paid him this respect, on account of his fellow- 
ship with angels. Some rather considered his theological theories as imbecili- 
ties ; the author above mentioned,* so candid in his eulogium, laments, never- 
theless, the striking contrast between the algebra and the visions of the New 
Jerusalem. 

" Swedenborg states properly his rank of nobility. He had the common 
degree ; and -was not, as many in America style him, a baron ; which title de- 
notes the second class of noblemen ; the first among the three classes being 
counts. 

" My conversation with Swedenborg, and other authentic sources of information con- 
cerning him : — 

" In the course of my education at the University of Upsal, I had free access 
to its excellent library, which, by its own revenue, and by donations, receives 
continually one or more copies of every interesting new book. There I perused 
the theological treatises of Swedenborg, published till the year 1765 ; among 
them, Arcana Ccdestia, De Ccdo ei Inferno, &c. In that year I went to reside at 
Stockholm, and continued partly in that city, and partly in its vicinity, for nearly 
three years. During that time, Swedenborg was a great object of public atten- 
tion in this metropolis, and his extraordinary character was a frequent topic of 
discussion. He resided at his house in the southern suburbs, which was in a 
pleasant situation, neat and convenient, with a spacious garden and other ap- 
pendages. There he received company. Not seldom he also appeared in 
pubUc, and mixed in private societies ; therefore sufficient opportunities were 

* See above p. 40. 



42 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

given to make observation on him. I collected much information from several 
respectable persons who had conversed with him ; which was the more easy, 
as I lived the whole time, as private tutor, in the family of Dr. Celsius, a gentle- 
man of distinguished talents, who afterwards became bishop of Scania; he and 
many of the eminent persons that frequented his house knew Swedenborg well. 

" In the summer of 1766, 1 waited on him at his house ; introducing myself, 
with an apology for the freedom I took ; assuring him that it was not in the least 
from youthful presumption, (I was then twenty,) but from a strong desire of 
conversing, with a character so celebrated. He received me very kindly. It 
being early in the afternoon, delicate coffee, without eatables, was served, agree- 
ably to the Swedish custom ; he was also, like pensive men in general, fond of 
this beverage. We conversed for nearly three hours; principally on the nature 
of human souls, and their states in the invisible world ; discussing the principal 
theories of psychology, by various authors ; among them the celebrated Dr. 
Wallerius, late Professor of Natural Theology at Upsal. He asserted positively, 
as he often does in his works, that he had intercourse with spirits of deceased 
persons. I presumed, therefore, to request of him as a great favor, to procure 
me an interview with my brother, who had departed this life a few months be- 
fore, a young clergyman officiating in Stockholm, and esteemed for his devo- 
tion, erudition and virtue. He answered, that God having for wise and good 
purposes separated the world of spirits from ours, a communication is never 
granted without cogent reasons; and asked what my motives were. I confess- 
ed that I had none besides gratifying brotherly affection, and an ardent wish to 
explore scenes so sublime and interesting to a serious mind. He replied, that 
my motives were good, but not sufficient; that if any important spiritual or 
temporal concern of mine had been the case, he would then have solicited per- 
mission from those angels who regulate those matters.* He showed me the gar- 
den. It had an agreeable building ; a wing of which was a kind of temple, to 
which he often retired for contemplation ; for which its peculiar structure, and 
dim, religious light, were suitable. 

* Here the Editors of the New Church Repository appended a note as follows : — 
"Although as to substance there can be no doubt of the correctness of Mr. Collin's 
memory, yet with due deference to that respectable gentleman, we cannot but remark, 
that we are of opinion he must have misapprehended one of Swedenborg's expressions. 
We allude to that which is expressed by Mr. Collin in the following words : ' That if any 
important spiritual or temporal concern of mine had been the case, he would then have 
solicited permission from those angels who regulate those matters.^ Now, as far as we are 
acquainted with the writings of Swedenborg, we have no recollection of his ever having 
inculcated the idea, that application for any favor, natural or supernatural, should be 
made to angels, hu,t to the Lord alone. We cannot, therefore, but conclude, that the 
declaration was either misunderstood, or mis-remembered." Upon which Dr. Collin, 
in a letter to the Editors, gave the following explanation : — 

" Gentlemen — Permit me to explain the following words in my conversation with 
Swedenborg: 'That if any important spiritual or temporal concern of mine had been 
the case, he would then have solicited permission from those angels who regulate such 
matters.' This answer to me is correctly translated from the Swedish. It does not im- 
ply, as you apprehend, any worship of angels, but only a request to them, as agents, 
by Divine commandment. Christians have generally believed such agency, as appears 
from the Bible and ecclesiastical history. Many persons, not chargeable with credulity, 
have ascribed to them influence on the human mind, and aid in dangers, when human 
means and other causes were incompetent, though this agency was not seen, heard, or 
felt by the bodily organs. Swedenborg did, indeed, assert a very familiar intercourse 
with them, but not any sort ol adoration. 

" Nicholas Collin." 



TESTIMONY OF THE REV. T. HARTLEY. 43 

" We parted with mutual satisfaction ; and he presented by me, to the said 
Di'. Celsius, an elegant copy of his Apocalypsis Revelata, then lately printed at 
Amsterdam. 

" I should have improved this personal acquaintance, but Swedenborg went 
soon afterwards on his last travels, from which he did not return : he died in 
London, and was buried in the cemetery of the Swedish church." 

In a letter addressed by Mr. Collin to the Rev. John Hargrove, of Baltimore, dated 
Philadelphia, March 16, 1801, which was lately found among the papers of Mr. H. 
after his decease, Mr. C. states respecting Swedenborg as follows : — 

" Swedenborg was universally esteemed for his various erudition in mathe - 
matics, mineralogy, &c., and for his probity, benevolence, and general virtue. 
Being very old when I saw him, he was thin and pale ; but still retained traces 
of beauty, and had something very pleasing in his physiognomy, and a dignity 
in his tall and erect stature. On my requesting his aid in procuring an inteview 
with a brother lately deceased, he answered very properly, that the partition- 
wall between this and the other world could not be opened without some im- 
portant cause, and not to gratify mere curiosity. When I come to Baltimore, 
sometime this spring, I shall tell you more. — I am, &c. 

" Nicholas Collin." 



IV. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

THE REV. THOMAS HARTLEY, M.A., 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG. 



Mr. Hartley has left his testimony respecting Swedenborg on record in the prefaces to 
the English editions of the works On the Intercourse between the Soul and the Body, and 
On Heaven and Hell, and in a letter to the translator of The True Christian Religion, the 
Rev. J. Clowes, M.A., Rector of St. John's, Manchester, inserted in the preface to that 
work. In the first of these prefaces, Mr. H. says respecting his author — 

*' I have conversed with him at different times, and in company with a gen- 
tleman of a learned profession and of extensive intellectual abilities : we have 
had confirmation of these things from his own mouth, and have received his 
testimony, and do both of us consider this our acquaintance with the author and 
his writings among the greatest blessings of our lives. The extensive learning 
displayed in his writings evinces him to be the scholar and the philosopher; and 
his polite behavior and address bespeak him the gentleman. He affects no 
honor, but declines it ; pursues no worldly interest, but spends his substance in 
travelling and printing, in order to communicate instniction and benefit to man- 
kind : and he is so far from the ambition of heading a sect, that wherever he re- 



44 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

sides on his travels he is a mere solitary, and almost inaccessible, though in his 
own country of a free and open behavior. He has nothing of the precisian in his 
manner, nothing of melancholy in his temper, and nothing in the least border- 
ing on the enthusiast in his conversation and vi^ritings." 

Mr. H. makes similar remarks in his letter to the translator of The True Christian 
Religion : — 

*.* The great Swedenborg (he says), was a man of uncommon humility. He 
was of a catholic spirit, and loved all good men of every church, making at the 
same time all candid allowance for the innocence of involuntary error. How- 
ever self-denying in his own person, as to gratifications and indulgences, even 
within the bounds of moderation ; yet nothing severe, nothing of the precisian, 
appeared in him, but on the contrary, an inward serenity and complacency of 
mind, were manifest in the sweetness of his looks and outward demeanor. It 
may reasonably be supposed, that I have weighed the character of our illustri- 
ous author in the scale of my best judgment, from the personal knowledge I had 
of him, from the best information I could procure respecting him, and from a 
diligent perusal of his writings ; and according thereto, I have found him to be 
the sound divine, the good man, the deep philosopher, the universal scholar, 
and the polite gentleman; and I further believe, that he had a high degree of 
illumination from the Spirit of God, was commissioned by him as an extraor- 
dinary messenger to the world, and had communication with angels and the 
spiritual worlds far beyond any since the time of the apostles. As such, I oflfer 
his character to the world, solemnly declaring that, to the best of my know- 
ledge, I am not herein led by any partiality or private views whatever, being 
much dead to every worldly interest, and accounting myself as unworthy of 
any higher character than that of a penitent sinner." 

What Mr. Hartley here says of himself is unquestionably true : for he was well known 
to many of the religious characters of that day as a man of the deepest piety, and he 
was at this time [1781] very far advanced in years, and near the end of his earthly 
career : to the testimony of such a man to the character of Swedenborg, what excep- 
tion can be made 1* 



V. 

TESTIMONY OF DR. MESSITER, 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG. 



The "gentleman of a learned profession and of extensive intellectual abilities," men- 
tioned by Mr. Hartley above, was the late Dr. Messiter, an eminent physician of that 
time. What his opinion of Swedenborg, the result of personal acquaintance, was, ap- 

* Mr. Hartley was the author of a volume of sermons, and of other works, inculcat- 
ing the Christian life, as well as the translator of two of Swedenborg's works, entitled 
the Intercourse between the Soul and the Body, and the Heaven and Hell. 



TESTIMONY OF DR. MESSITER. 45 

pears from his correspondence with the Professors of Divinity at Edinburgh, Glasgow 
and Aberdeen;* to which Universities, by desire of Swedenborg, he, in 1769, presented 
some of his works. In his letter to Dr. Hamilton at Edinburgh, Dr. M. says, — 

" As I have had the honor of being frequently admitted to the author's com- 
pany when he was in London, and to converse with him on various points of 
learning, I will venture to affirm, that there are no parts of mathematical, philo- 
sophical, or medical knowledge, nay, I believe I might justly say, of human 
literature, to which he is in the least a stranger ; yet so totally insensible is he 
of his own merit, that I am confident he does not know that he has any ; and, as' 
himself somewhere says of the angels, he always turns his head away on the 
sUghtest encomium." 

Dr. Hamilton, in his answer, candidly says, — 

" I have seen enough to convince me that the honorable author is a very 
learned and pious man — qualities that shall ever command my respect." 

So in his letter to Dr. Gerard at Aberdeen, Dr. Messiter, speaking of Swedenborg's 
works, says — 

" They are the productions of a man whose good qualities resulting from his 
natural and acquired abilities, I can with much truth, from my frequent con- 
verse with him, assert, are a high ornament to human nature. Credulity, preju- 
dice, or partiality, seem to have no share in his composition or character ; nor 
is he in the least influenced by any avaricious or interested views. A proof of 
this last assertion was afforded me, by his refusing an offer of any money he 
might have occasion for while in England, which was made him on a supposal, 
that his want of connexions in a place where he was a stranger might prove an 
obstacle to his divine pursuits." 

We will, however, adduce the letters of Dr. Messiter to the Scotch Professors : — 
To the Professor of Divinity at Edinburgh. 

" October 23, 1769. 
•* Ret. Sir, • 

" As I have not the honor of knowing your name, I hope you will not attribute 
that deficiency in the superscription to a want of respect towards the professor 
of a science which I have ever held in the greatest veneration. The Hon. Mr. 
Swedenborg has desired me to send you, as a present, some of his late Tracts, 
which, should you think proper to peruse them, I doubt not but you will con- 
sider them as very extraordinary, and certainly more proper to be submitted to 
the scrutiny of gentlemen of your dignity and profession, than to that of those 
whose want of a proper scale of literature but ill qualifies them to judge of their 
sublimity. As I have had the honor of being frequently admitted to the author's 
company when he was in London, and to converse with him on various points 
of learning, I will venture to affirm, that there are no parts of mathematical, 
philosophical, or medical knowledge, nay, 1 believe I might justly say, of human 
literature, to which he is in the least a stranger ; yet so totally insensible is he of 
his own merit, that I am confident he does not know that he has any ; and, as 
himself somewhere says of the angels, he always turns his head away on the 

* See Intellectual Repository, Vol. iii. (first series) p. 449, &c. 



4^ DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

slightest encomium. What he knows of the most interesting and noble science 
of all, I most humbly submit, Sir, to your better judgment : yet I must say, that 
though I have read much of the historical and mystical proofs of the truth of 
Scripture, 1 have never yet met with any assertions so wonderfully affecting the 
mind of man ; and wherever I have read of anything of this nature approach- 
ing in some measure to the gift of our author, it has generally been delivered 
by persons whose education would scarcely secure them from the censure of 
enthusiasm or imposture. I should be glad, Sir, to be honored with a line from 
you when you get the books, and happy to receive your opinion when it may 
be suitable to you to confer that favor on me — I am, Sir, with the greatest re- 
spect, your most obedient and most humble servant, 

" H. Messiter. 
" At Broom House, Fulham, Middlesex." 



The Professor's Answer. 

'•Edmburgh, Nov. 6, 1769. 
'' Sir, 

" I have received the books concerning which you were pleased to advise me 
in your favor of the 23d of October, for which I return you cordial thanks. I 
have at present, and shall have during the winter season, but little respite from 
the duties of my office of Divinity Professor here ; so that it will be seven or 
eight months ere I can purpose to peruse them deliberately, and with that care 
and attention which the serious and important nature of the subjects therein 
treated plainly requires. I have, however, seen enough to convince me that 
the honorable author is a very learned and pious man — qualities that shall ever 
command my respect. His sentiments, in several theological points of import- 
ance, differ not a little from those that are entertained in our North British Church, 
and he supports them not wholly by argumentation from Scripture, but rests a 
good deal on visions of angels and intercourse with the spiritual world : as I 
cannot boast of any experience of that kind, I am the less qualified to judge of 
the weight that ought to be laid on that mean of proof. This is all I can pre- 
sume to say at present, and on the footing of a very slight and cursory inspec- 
tion of the books. Meanwhile, as you have sent a copy of the Apocalypsis Rev- 
elata, and another quarto, in which Amor Conjugialis et Scortatio, or Fornicatio 
Vaga et Libidinosa, are explained and contrasted in respect of their spiritual and 
mystical meaning, I shall deposit these in the theological library here, as also a 
single copy of each of the other papers and pamphlets, reserving to my own 
proper use only a single copy of each of those publications of which you have 
transmitted several copies ; the residue I shall give away, as from you, to such 
of the ministers of this city as to the best of my judgment, will most thankfully 
receive them. — I am, with sincere respect and gratitude, Sir, your most obedient 
and most obliged servant, 

" Robert Hamilton." 



I 



TESTIMONY OF DR. MESSITER. 47 

To the Professor of Divinitij in the University of Glasgow. 



Rev. Sir, 



Had I the honor of your acquaintance I should not have addressed you in the 
general term of Professor of Divinity, and therefore hope your candor will not 
suffer you to construe my ignorance into a disrespect I would not willingly be 
thought guilty of. The Hon. Mr. Swedenborg has desired me to send you, as a 
present from him, some late Tracts of his writing, I hope not more extraordinary 
than true. As I have had often the honor of conversing with him, I can with 
great truth assert, that he is truly amiable in his morals, most learned and hum- 
ble in his discourse, and superlatively affable, humane, and courteous in his 
behavior; and this joined with a solidity of understanding and penetration far 
above the level of an ordinary genius. Thus much I know of him, and there- 
fore sacredly affirm, though not without an humble deference to your opinion of 
his writings. If this character be allowed him, as I am confident it will in time, 
it will remove the most general objections offered by the most violent and daring 
Deists to revealed religion, viz., that the authors [who profess to have received 
revelations] are obscure illiterate enthusiasts. The two last charges, his writings 
(if not what is above said) will soon refute, and the first will be removed by the 
account given of himself in the letter to his friend, which you have at the end of 
the Summaria Expositio. Though I must beg pardon for having taking up thus 
much of your time, I must yet take the liberty to remark, that the translation of 
the above-mentioiied Treatise is designed as a present for any English reader 
you might think proper to present it to, but as it is very indifierently executed, I 
am confident it will do the author no honor, and therefore wish he had omitted 
it. I shall be glad to be honored with a line on receipt of the books, and on any 
future convenient occasion shall be happy to receive your opinion of them. — I 
am, Sir, with the greatest respect, your most humble and most obedient servant, 

" H. Messiter." 



The Professor's Reply. 
" Sir, 

" I am favored with yours of the 23d October, signifying that you had sent 
me as a present, from the Hon. Mr. Swedenborg, some of his late Tracts. The 
box with the books came to my hand some days before I received your letter, 
and you may judge of my surprise when I could not conjecture how or by 
whom they were sent. I beg you will be so good as to return my thanks to the 
honorable gentleman for his present. I dare not presume in a hasty manner to 
pass any judgment upon performances which seem to contain several things not 
a little extraordinary. Considering the excellent character you give the author, 
I am persuaded he has the interest of religion at heart, and every friend of that 
interest cannot but wish success to intentions so pious and so dishiterested. I 
am sorry you think the translation of the Summaria Expositio so ill executed, be- 
cause it is natural to apply to the translation for a general notion of the author's 
principles and views ; and, if I mistake not, the original is not to be found in 
the parcel which I have received. — I have the honor to be, with great respect, 
Sir, your most obedient humble servant, 

"R. Traill. 
"College, Glasgow, Nov. 3, 1769." 



48 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

To the Professor of Divinity in the University of Aberdeen. 

"Rev. Sir, 

*' I hope the want of knowledge of your name will apologize for the direction 
on the superscription of this letter, which I address to you in obedience to the 
desire of my learned friend the Honorable Mr, Swedenborg, who has desired me 
to present you with some late pieces of his writing. I wish, good Sir, you may 
think them worthy of your perusal, as they are the productions of a man whose 
good qualities, resulting from his natural, acquired, and blessed abilities, I can 
with much truth, from my frequent converse with him, assert, are a high orna- 
ment to human nature. Credulity, prejudice, or partiality seem to have no 
s^re in his compositions or character, nor is he in the least influenced by any 
avaricious or interested view. A proof of this last assertion was afforded me by 
his refusing an offer of any money he might have occasion for while in Eng- 
land, which was made him on a supposal that his want of connexions in a 
place where he was a stranger might prove an obstacle to his divine pursuits. 
I am inclined to mention this circumstance to obviate the jealousies most men 
are apt to entertain of works of this sort, which they think only designed ad cap- 
tandos denarios : but this suspicion seems also pretty well removed in the printed 
letter entitled Ad Amicum Responsum. His learning, like his charity, is universal : 
but what his merit in these performances may be, I humbly submit to your 
superior judgment. — Excuse this liberty, and believe me to be, with the most 
profound respect, Sir, your most humble and obedient servant, 

'• H. Messiter." 



The Professor's Answer. 

♦« Aberdeen, November 7, 1769. 

"Sir, 

** It is about a week since I received the favor of yours of October 23, but the 
books to which it refers came to hand only last night. I have had scarce time 
at all to look into them, and therefore can pretend to give no opinion of them; 
but, as you desired to hear from me on my receiving them, I could not think of 
delaying to return my thanks to you and Mr. Swedenborg for the present to 
which I have no sort of title. I hope you will do me the honor to offer him my 
best respects. The necessary busmess of my profession at this season will 
probably make it some time before I can read the pieces sent me, with such 
care as to form an opinion of them : as soon as I am able to form it, I shall be 
very ready to communicate it to you.— In the mean time, I am Sir, your obliged 
humble servant, 

"Alex. Gerard." 



TESTIMONY OF COUNT A. J. VON HOPKEN. 49 

VI. 
TESTIMONY OF MR. WM. COOKWORTHY, 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG. 



With the Englishmen whose approbation of Swedenborg's sentiments was strength- 
ened, by a personal acquaintance with himself, must be reckoned the late Mr. Wm. 
Cookworthy, a man of most superior character, the friend of the first Lord Camelford, 
and of Captain Jervis, afterwards Earl St. Vincent, and the associate of many of the 
literati of his day. This gentleman testified his satisfaction with Swedenborg and his 
writings, by joining with Mr. Hartley in translating the treatise on Heaven and Hell, and 
defraying the whole expense of the printing and publication.* 



VII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

COUNT ANDREW JOHN VON HOPKEN, 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG. 



This nobleman was one of theinstitutorsof the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences, 
which, being a man of eminent learning, he served for a considerable period in the 
capacity of Secretary. He afterwards was, for many years. Prime Minister of the king- 
dom ; which station, in addition to his post as one of the sixteen Senators, w^ith whom, 
prior to the revolution in 1772, the royal power in fact was vested, the king being merely 
the president of that body, made him the second person in the kingdom. He died on 
the 9th of March, 1790. In the New Jerusalem Magazine, published in 1790 and 1791, 
are five letters of this nobleman to General Tuxen, in answer to some inquiries respect- 
ing Swedenborg made by the latter. Count Hopken's letters exhibit much of the wari- 
ness of an old politician ; yet while he even seems to censure some parts of Sweden- 
borg's writings, his anxiety to apologize for them clearly discovers what was his real 
opinion. 



Letters from Senator Count Hdpken to General Tuxen. 

LETTER I. 

*•' Sir, 

" My stay in the country, at a distance from the capital and the great world, 
is the cause of my answering later than I ought the letter of April 21st, with 
which you have honored me. The office with which I was invested in my 

* See a Memoir of him in The Intellectual Repository, New Series, Vol. i. p. 439, &c. 
4 



50 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

country, has often made it my duty to give my opinion and counsel in delicate 
and difficult matters ; but I do not recollect any one so delicate ever to have 
been submitted to my judgment, as that which you have been pleased to pro- 
pose to me. Such sentiments and persuasions as one person may entertain, do 
not always suit others ; and what may appear to me probable, manifest, certain 
and incontestible, may to others seem dark, incomprehensible, nay, even absurd. 
Partly natural organization, partly education, partly professional studies, partly 
prejudices, partly fear of abandoning received opinions, and other causes, 
occasion a difference of ideas in men. To unite and settle them in tempo- 
ral concerns is not hazardous ; but in spiritual matters, when a tender con- 
science is to be satisfied, I have not the spirit requisite for this, and I am also 
bound to confess my want of knowledge. All I could say by v/ay of prelimi- 
nary on this subject, regards the person of the late Assessor Swedenborg. I have 
not only known him these two-and-forty years, but also, some time since, daily 
frequented his company. A man, who like me has lived long in the world, and 
even in an extensive career of life, must have had numerous opportunities of 
knowing men as to their virtues or vices, their weakness or strength ; and in 
consequence thereof, I do not recollect to have known any man of more uni- 
formly virtuous character than Swedenborg; always contented, never fretful or 
morose, although throughout his life his soul was occupied with subhme 
thoughts and speculations. He was a true philosopher, and lived like one ; 
he labored diligently, and lived frugally without sordidness ; he travelled con- 
tinually, and his travels cost him no more than if he had lived at home. He was 
gifted with a most happy genius, and a fitness for every science, which made 
him shine in all those jsvhich he embraced. He was, without contradiction, the 
most learned man in my country ; in his youth he was a great poet. I have in 
my possession some remnants of his I-atin poetry, which Ovid would not have 
been ashamed to own. His Latin in his middle age was in an easy, elegant, and 
ornamental style ; in his latter years it was equally clear, but less elegant after 
he had turned his thoughts to spiritual subjects. He was well acquainted with 
the Hebrew and Greek ; an able and profound mathematician ; a happy mechanic, 
of which he gave proof in Norway, where, by an easy and simple method, he 
transported the largest galleys over the high moimtains and rocks to a gulf 
where the Danish fleet was stationed. He was likewise a natural philosopher, 
yet on the Cartesian principles. He detested metaphysics as founded on falla- 
cious ideas, because they transcend our sphere, by means of which theology 
has been drawn from its simplicity and become artificial and corrupted. He 
was perfectly conversant with mineralogy, having for a long time been Assessor 
in the Mineral College, on which science he also published a valuable and clas- 
sical work, both as to theory and practice, printed at Leipsic in 1734: if he had 
remained in his office, his merits and talents would have entitled him to the 
highest dignity ; but he preferred ease of mind, and sought happiness in study. 
In Holland he began to apply himself to anatomy, in which he made singular 
discoveries which are preserved somewhere in the Acta Literaria. I imagine 
this science and his meditations on the effects of the soul upon our curiously 
constructed body, did, by degrees, lead him from the material to the spiritual. 
He possessed a sound judgment upon all occasions ; he saw everything clearly, 
and expressed himself well on every subject. The most solid memorials, and 



TESTMONY OF COUNT A. J. VON HOPKEN. 51 

the best penned, at the diet of 1761, on matters of finance, were presented by him. 
Tn one of these he refuted a large work in quarto on the same subject, quoted all 
the corresponding passages of it, and all this in less than one sheet. Of his 
method of teaching we see proofs in all his writings which relate to, or are 
founded on, the Arcana Calestia. He might, with or without reason, which I do 
not indeed venture to determine, be accused of having given a heated imagina- 
tion too free play in his revelations. But, for my own part, I have nothing on 
which I could found this criticism. Whether, or no, our Lord, in our times, grants 
to particular persons particular revelations ; what the nature of such revelations 
is ; and what is the criterion for distinguishing the genuine from the false : of all 
this I have no solid grounds for judging. The author of the Monthly Review 
judges admirably in every other respect except on matters of divinity; and his 
testimony on that head avails nothing with me. I once represented, in rather a 
serious manner, to this venerable man, that I thought he would do better not to 
mix his beautiful writings with so many memorable relations,'^ or things heard and 
seen in the spiritual world concerning the states of men after death, of which 



* A considerable portion of Swedenborg's writings consists of what he calls memora- 
bilia, or memorable relations " of things heard and seen" in the spiritual world. (See 
above p. 33, where the manner in which he saw them is explained.) At the conclusion 
of every article on doctrine, in his large work, entitled, The True Christian Religion, or 
the Universal Theology of the New Church, as well as at the conclusion of the explanation 
of every chapter of the Word, as to its spiritual sense, in the Arcana Ccelestia, and 
Apocalypse Revealed, he has added one or more of these memorable relations, which 
always tend either to illustrate the doctrine in question, or to convey some important 
information respecting the state of man after death, or respecting his state as a spirit in 
the spiritual world, in which he is to live for ever, either in states of ineffable happiness 
in heaven, or of unspeakable misery in hell, according to his previous life in the world. 
The information, therefore, which these memorable relations profess to communicate is 
of the utmost moment, and consequently claims the most serious attention of every 
thinking mind. Levity and worldly-mindedness, we know, make light of everything 
spiritual; but seriousness and piety are delighted to become acquainted with things 
which concern the spirit of man, and v.^hich point out, in the most effectual manner, 
the way to holiness and consequent happiness, aiid present the most powerful persua- 
sives to desist from evil of every kind, and to seek peace and pursue it. This is the 
eflect which the reading of the memorable relations, contained in the writings of Sweden- 
borg, will invariably have upon the sincere and pious mind. All the objects and phe- 
nomena of the spiritual world are, according to Swedenbovp-, directly correspondent to 
the states of the inhabitants, so as perfectly to represent, in outward emblems, the af- 
fections and thoughts, that is, the real life, whether good or evil, of the spirits whom 
they surround. That this is the fact. Holy Scripture, when read with any degree of 
spiritual discernment, amply testifies. Thus, in the first Psalm, " The man who walketk 
not in the counsel of the ungodly, ^c, is pronounced blessed, and is comjJared to a tree 
planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season, tvhose leaf also 
shall not xoither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper ." Now, here the tree, the rivers of 
water, the fruit, and the unfading leaf, are not only mere figures of speech, but are 
emblems corresponding to the blissful state of the good man, and depict the delightful 
scenery by which he is surrounded when he becomes an inhabitant of the spiritual 
world, or when he comes into heaven after death. That there are spiritual objects 
and phenomena in the spiritual world, as cognizable to the spiritual eyes and senses of 
spirits, as material objects and phenomena are cognizable to the natural eyes and 
senses of men, although not subject to mechanical and chemical laws, as are material 
objects, see above p. 33. And in respect to the Vv^cked, and the abominations of wicked- 
ness, it is evident from many parts of the Scriptures, that every evil principle, and every 
wicked lust is represented by outward emblems which correspond to them, and which 
portray them to the external senses of spirits ; we will only adduce one passage from 
the prophet Ezekiel, chap. viii. 9, 10: ^^ And he said unto me. Go in, and behold the 
wicked abominations that they do here ; so I went in and saw, and behold evert porm of 
CREEPING THINGS AND AB03IINABLE BEASTS, fltncZ all the idols of the housc of Isracl, por- 
trayed upon the wall round about." The prophet saw these things in vision, that is. 



52 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

ignorance makes a jest and derision. But he answered me, that this did not de- 
pend on him ; that he was too old to sport with spiritual things, and too much concerned 
for his eternal happiness to give in to such foolish notions, assuring me, on his hopes of 
salvation, that no imagination produced in him his revelations, which were true, and 
from what hehad heard and seen. This may be : the church cannot judge of mys- 
teries, nor can I. The generaUty, when they are speaking of the theology of 
Swedenborg, always dwell on his memorable relations, and think that everything 
consists in these. In whatever he relates of the spiritual world, and the other 
progressions in the angelic heaven, there appears, as I think, an analogy and 
resemblance of the gradations which God has established in the world, and in 
which no variations or exceptions are admitted ; insomuch, that Swedenborg 
has taken the same road by which we proceed from the visible to the invisible, 
from things known to things unknown, from several collected facts to one fun- 
damental truth before unknown to us ; in like maimer as in arithmetic, we are 
led from known numbers to those we seek. We have no other way of obtain- 
ing knowledge. Few persons have judiciously read his works, which every- 
where sparkle with genius ; if I meet with anything unusual or extraordinary, 
and which might indicate a disordered understanding, I do not judge of it. We 
read Plato with admiration ; but there is nothing to be met with in his works, 
which, if related by another person, might not be deemed extravagant, incon- 
ceivable, and absurd. But I grow too prolix. Sir, and you may be tired with 
such a long and hastily written letter. This I have written with a view of satis- 
fying in some manner your desire, and thus of proving the perfect esteem, with 
which I have the honor to be. Sir, your obedient servant, 

" H6PKEN. 

*' Schenninge, May 11, 1772." 

*' P. S. Your epitaph on Swedenborg is very beautiful, true, and v/orthy of the 
subject" 



Count Hdpken to General Tuxen. 

letter ii. 
" Sir, 

" From your long silence, I concluded you had not been satisfied with my last, 
containing my opinion on the late Assessor Swedenborg's System of Divinity ; 
and from your letter of March 8th, I perceive I. had some cause for my suspicions. 
In every science but divinity, a man may give his opinion positively, and, if it 
were erroneous, endeavor to make others embrace it also ; for this does not de- 
stroy the calm and quiet of the conscience. It is quite indifferent in the other 
life, with regard to happiness, to believe with Ptolemy, that the earth rests in 
the centre, and that the sun, with the other planets, revolves round it in twenty- 
four hours; or with Copernicus, the opposite. But as soon as the question is 



when his spiritual eyeswere open to see the objects in the spiritual world. The memo- 
rable relations of Swedenborg will be found, by every serious mind, to contain lessons of 
wisdom, concerning the spiritual states of men, of the greatest importance, which could 
not be so effectuaU cnmniunicated in any other manner. 



TESTIMONY OF COUNT A. J. VON HOPKEN. 53 

concerning a subject relative to salvation, which is to satisfy the conscience in 
every period of life, then my thoughts are of a more tender nature, and I am 
bound to use caution in communicating them to others. The late Swedenborg 
certainly was a pattern of sincerity, of virtue and piety, and at the same time, in 
my opinion, the most learned man in this kingdom; but all these qualities, 
which are so many evidences of an honest, virtuous and pious hfe, do not, at 
the same time, prove, that he could not err like other men. What to my judg- 
ment may appear evident, convincing, and indisputable, may to others appear 
obscure, complicated, and i3roblematical. Our intellectual faculties are so dif- 
ferent, as vv^ell as our education and circumstances; and hence proceeds all the 
diversity of opinions prevailing among men, which are never to be reconciled. 
I agree with you, Sir, in this, that the Swedenb.orgian system is more compre- 
hensible to our reason, and less complicate than other systems ; and while it 
forms virtuous men and citizens, it prevents at the same time, all kinds of enthu- 
siasm and superstition, both of which occasion so many and such cruel vexa- 
tions, or ridiculous singularities, in the world : and from the present state of re- 
ligion, (more or less everywhere conspicuous, according to the more or less free 
form of government,) I am perfectly convinced that the interpolations w^hich 
men have confusedly inserted into religion, have nearly effected a total corrup- 
tion or revolution ; and when this is seen, the Swedenborgian system will be- 
come more general, more agreeable, and more intelligible than at present — opini- 
orum commenta delet dies, naturce judicia confirmat, says Cicero. The work of God 
is in its composition simple, and in its duration perpetual ; on the contrary, the 
contrivances of man are complicate, and have no lasting subsistence. Those 
few truths w^iich we possess, and perhaps want in this world, are equally intel- 
ligible to the most simple as to the most profound metaphysician. Tenets and 
arguments have troubled mortals more than convinced them ; excited more re- 
ligious quarrels and wars in Christendom, than they have made good Christians. 
The judgment of father Hellen's has afforded me great pleasure, and proves him 
to be a reasonable man. The late Swedenborg did not, on his death-bed, recant 
what he has written ; of which I have particularly informed myself. Your own 
opinion. Sir, on the affair of Gottenburg, is a hvely and exact representation of 
the persons interested. I remember, here the expressions of an English poet: 

'Is there a churchmaa who on God relies. 
Whose life his faith and doctrine justifies 1 
They hunt good livings and abhor good lives.' 

No notice is to be taken of the English criticisms on the works of Swedenborg. 
I have got those journals, but have not yet been able to discover the nature and 
quality of their religious opinions. The letter of David Paul ab Indagine is un- 
known to me ; and I have reason to doubt whether Swedenborg, in his life time, 
ever knew of it. In his latter years, he never read the WTitings of others, being 
abundantly occupied in writing himself. Your correspondence. Sir, is not only 
very agreeable to me, but also very edifying. T wish my answer may afford you 
equal satisfaction ; at least I can assure you of the sincere affection with which 
I have the honor of remaining. Sir, your obedient servant, 

" H6PKEN. 

« Schenninge, May 21, 1773.'' 



54 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

Count HdpJcen to General Tuxen. 

LETTER III, 
**SlR, 

" Partly travels, and partly indisposition have prevented my answering your 
favor of the 28th May ; besides, the contents of that letter are such as to require 
much time for reflection, much attention, and still greater caution in the execu- 
tion, than questions of another nature in general demand. I am not surprised, 
that the late Assessor Swedenborg left the objections of Paul ab Indagine unan- 
swered; for though the system of the former has not a more powerful adversary 
than this man, yet it runs no risk, as nothing is objected to Swedenborg, but 
what might on equally good ground be objected to orthodoxy, as it is called ; 
even his Autopsy, or Visa et Audita* are of such a nature, that they can never be 
proved, nor do they cause any faith and belief further than as the rest of his 
tenets are well founded, and possess force and authenticity. Those who take 
upon themselves the business of refuting the opinions of others, ought first to 
obtain a perfect idea of the system they mean to refute, and not catch at trifles, 
which, by themselves, are apparently of no consequence, but in their connection 
with the whole are of importance : secondly, to be cautious of making such 
objections, as, with equal force, reason, and authority maybe urged against what 
is called orthodoxy, I think Paul ab Indagine has acted contrary to these rules ; 
I am persuaded. Sir, you must already have observed these defects, which con- 
sequently need not be pointed out by me. I am no theologian ; but I do not 
build my rehgion on that artificial and confused theology, which ambition, en- 
thusiasm, and superstition have spun out, which gives rise to sects, and excites 
in weak minds anxiety and despair. If we look around us in Christendom, we 
shall find the state of religion to be such as I have described, and that there is 
no other cause for it. — I have the honor to remain, with particular esteem, Sir, 
your obedient servant, H6pken. 

*' Schenninge-Ulfosa, Aug. 1, 1773 



Count Hopken to General Tuxen. 

letter iv. 
«' Sir, 

"By last post I received your honored letter with the greatest pleasure and ac- 
knowledgment for the interest you have been pleased to take in the change of 
my situation, I have now experienced, that we are not masters of our own fate 
in this world, but that it is governed by a superior Power, which demands submis- 
sion to its decrees. I should be too great a loser, if, on this change of my situa- 
tion, I were to lose your useful correspondence. This it is which 1 therefore 
request of you, when you have matter and opportunity; and, besides, I assure 
you, that with me honores non mutant mores ; on the contrary, I shall endeavor on 
all occasions to show the sincere and perfect esteem, with which 1 always am, 
Sir, your most obedient servant, 

" Hopken. 
"Ulfosa, Jan. 13, 1774." 

* Things heard and seen in the spiritual world, or his memorable relations. 



TESTIMONY OF COUNT A. J. VON HOPKEN. 55 

Count Hopken to General Tuxen. 

LETTER V. 

" Sir, 

" I have had the honor of receiving your letter dated Elsineur, June 16th. But 
I am very sorry that I could only enjoy an hour of the edifying and learned con- 
versation of Dr. Bastholm, and that I could not show him more attention and 
civility, as he was to continue his journey the next day through Upsal, without 
returning to Stockholm. I found him to be a very rare clergyman, for he spoke 
reasonably, and without acrimony, of all the different opinions which have of 
late arisen in matters of religion. He was by no means a Swedenborgian, for 
he did not understand his memorable relations; and I could wish the happy 
deceased had left them out, since they may prevent infidelity from approaching 
towards his doctrines. I represented to him these inconveniences ; but he said 
that he was commanded to declare what he had seen in the other world ; and 
he related it as a proof that he did not reveal his own thoughts, but that they 
came from above. As for the rest, i find in his system a simplicity and grada- 
tion, and such a spirit as the work of God in nature everywhere proves and 
exhibits ; for whatever man creates is complicate, labored, and subject to vicis- 
situde. The atithors of the Monthly Review, who every month publish criticisms 
that are rather severe, speak of Swedenborg as an extraordinary and wonderful 
man, and withotit adopting his principles, treat him with much regard and 
respect. The sentence said to have been pronounced on Swedenborg by a 
committee during the diet, which you request of me, has not reached my know- 
ledge, and probably does not exist in the manner of approbation. The matter 
began at Gottenburg, particularly against the late Dr. Beyer, and was continued 
here by the chancellor of justice, but came to nothing; for neither the accuser 
nor the judges understood Swedenborg, and had no lights, or capacity to judge 
of such matters. Dr. Beyer has employed a vast deal of pains about his Index,* 
which deserves all admiration, and is well worth having. Here it is not to be 
had, except either in the house of the deceased, or else from Amsterdam., where 
it was printed.— I have the honor to be, with the most perfect esteem. Sir, your 
obedient servant, 

" Hopken. 
" Stockholm, July 6, 1781." 

" The above letters are faithful copies from the originals in my hands. 

'•'C. TuXEN." 



Opinion of Count Hopken respecting the writings of Swedenborg, in a letter to another 

friend. 
*' Dear Sir, 

" The present religion is mystical and filled with paradoxes ; it is as incohe- 
rent and unreasonable, as if formed for cattle, and not for rational men : agree- 

* This Index is a very elaborate work, entitled, " Index Initialis in opera Sivedenborgii 
theologica, iripartitus. Primus, Verborum, Nominii^in, Rerum ; Secundus, Dogmatum, Sen- 
tentiarum ; Tertius, Locorum Scripturce SacrcB LucuUntori(,'m, Scientice Correspondentia- 
rum, DoctrincE Ccclesti Studioque Biblico Dicatus.'^ Astdodami, 1779 — Dr. Beyer was 
Professor of Greek Literature, and Assessor in the Consistory of Gottenburg, and was 
one of Swedenborg's intimate friends. We shall adduce below the testimony of this 
pious and learned man concerning Sv/edenborg. 



56 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

ably to its prevailing tenets, you may perpetrate any villainies, and yet be saved. 
The doctrine of the priests is Polytheism. They assert that Oiie is the creator of 
the world, and another the author of religion ; they make all to depend upon faith 
and momentary salvation. But the doctrine of Swedenborg is the most rational 
of all Christian doctrines, and urges as its first object, to be of good and honest 
principles. There are two circumstances in the doctrine and writings of Swe- 
denborg : the first is his Memorable Relations ; of these I cannot judge, not having 
had any spiritual intercourse myself, by which to judge of his assertions,* either 
to affirm or contradict them, but they cannot appear more extraordinary than 
the Apocalypse of John, and other similar relations contained in the Bible: the 
second is his Tenets of Doctrine ; of these I can judge : they are excellent, irrefu- 
table, and the best that ever were taught, promoting the happiest social life. I 
know that Swedenborg has related his memorabilia bond fide. I asked him once, 
why he wrote and published these memorable relations, which seemed to throw 
so much ridicule on his doctrine, otherwise so rational; and whether it would 
not be best for him to keep them to himself, and not to publish them to the 
world? But he answered, that Ae had orders from the Lord to publish them ; and 
that those ivho might ridicule him on that account would do him injustice; for, said he, 
why should 1, who am a man in years, render myself ridiculous for phantasies and false- 
hoods. I have sometimes told the king, that, if ever a new colony were to be 
formed, no religion could be better, as the prevailing and established one, than 
that developed by Swedenborg from the Sacred Scriptures, and this on the two 
following accounts : 1st. This religion, in preference to, and in a higher degree 
than, any other, must produce the most honest and industrious subjects ; for this 
religion places properly the worship of God in uses. 2dly. It causes the least fear 
of death, as this religion regards death merely as a transition from one state into 
another, from a worse to a better situation ; nay, upon his principles, I look upon 
death as being of hardly any greater moment than drinking a glass of water. T 
have been convinced of the truth of Swedenborg's doctrine from these arguments 
in particular, viz. That One is the author of everything, and not a separate person 
the Creator, and another the Author of religion ; that there are degrees m everything, 
and these subsisting to eternity — the history of creation is unaccountable, unless 
explained in the spiritual sense. We may say of the religion which Swedenborg 
has developed in his writings from the Word of God, with Gamaliel : ' If it be of 
God it cannot be^ overthrown ,- but if it be of man it unll come to nought.' 

" H6PKEN." 

The above testimony must surely be allowed to carry the greatest weight, both as it 
refers to the character of Swedenborg himself and of his writings. On the former sub- 
ject, the assertions of a person of such rank and knowledge of the world, and founded 
on forty-two years intimacy, are beyond all exception ; and on the latter, the opinion of 
a man of such intelligence, and such evident prudence and caution, is entitled to the 
highest respect. m 

* See above p. 51, where the nature and use of the memorable relations are explained. 



TESTIMONY OF .GENERAL TUXEN . 57 

VIII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

GENERAL CHRISTIAN TUXEN, 
f 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG. 



Connected with the last testimony is that of General Christian Tuxen, to whom Coiant 
Hopken's letters were addressed. This gentleman, being the king of Denmark's Com- 
missioner of War at Elsineul", at which port the vessels in which Swedenborg was pro- 
ceeding on his voyages frequently stopped in their passage through the Sound, repeat- 
edly obtained the company of the illustrious stranger at his house. In a letter to Mr, 
Nordenskjold, dated from Elsineur, May 4th, 1790, and printed in the New Jerusalem 
Magazine^ he details many particulars of these interviews : and the result was, that he 
was so completely satisfied with his " valuable guest," that he calls him, at the close of 
his letter, " our late benefactor, and in truth not only ours, but that of all mankind, if 
they are seriously solicitous about their state after death. For my part," he adds, " I 
thank our Lord the God of heaven, that I have been acquainted with this great man 
and his writings. I esteem this as the greatest blessing I ever experienced in this life, 
and hope I shall profit by them in working out my salvation." 

The following is an account of these personal interviews : 

" A report having been circulated, that the late queen dowager of Sweden, 
Louisa Ulrica, had given Assessor Swedenborg the commission of speaking 
with her deceased brother the Prince of Prussia ; I inquired (says the general,) 
of a certain minister,* a nobleman of great learning, who, for several years past, 
had honored rae with his intimate friendship, whether he had heard anything of 
this report, and what kind of person Swedenborg was, and what character he 
bore. He answered me, that the report was not ill-founded ; that it had been 
communicated by all the foreign ministers at Stockholm, to their respective 
courts ; that Swedenborg from his youth w^as acknowledged to be one of the 
most learned men in Europe, particularly in mineralogy ; but added, at the same 
time, that since he had, during the last twenty-seven years of his life, given 
himself up to the study of theology, it was thought by many, that, as he pre- 
tentled he could speak with the dead, his understanding was deranged, 

" As I lived at Elsineur, I also heard several other things concerning him; that 
he often passed the Sound in his travels to and from Amsterdam and London ; 
and in what manner he had answered his landlord who kept the sign of Charles 
the XII., who, on asking him how that king fared in the other world, replied 
that he retained the same sentiments and conduct in the world of spirits as he 
did in this world. As also the following anecdote, which I had from a very re- 



* Senator Count Hopken, whose testimony we have just adduced. 



58 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 



1 



spectable friend, who was a witness of it, viz. : That himself, together with the 
other officers of the custom-house at Oresound, had been invited by the Swedish 
consul, Mr. Kryger, to dine in the company of Swedenborg, whom many of the 
first people in town (also purposely invited) wished to see and know. Being 
all seated at table, and none of them taking the liberty of addressing Sweden- 
borg, who was likewise silent, the Swedish consul thought it incumbent on him 
to break silence, for which purpose he took occasion, from the death of the 
Danish king Christian VI., which happened the preceding year, to inquire of 
Swedenborg, as he could see and speak with the dead, whether he had also 
seen Christian VI. after his decease. To this Swedenborg replied in the affirma- 
tive ; adding, that when he saw him the first time, he was accompanied by 
a bishop, or some other prelate, who humbly begged the king's pardon for the 
many errors into which he had led him by his counsels. A son of the said 
deceased prelate happened to be present at the ta.ble ; the consul, Mr. Kryger, 
therefore fearing that Swedenborg might say something further to the disadvan- 
tage of the father, interrupted him, saying, Sir, this is his son ! Swedenborg re- 
phed, It may be, but what I am saying is true. This and other relations induced 
me a few years afterwards to solicit the Swedish consul, Mr. Rahling, to ac- 
quaint me the next time Swedenborg came to Elsineur ; he soon afterwards in- 
formed me, by means of his nephew, Mr. Beyer, that Swedenborg was then 
at his house at dinner, together with the captain who brought him over, and 
desired I would make great haste as the wind proved favorable, and they were 
on the point of embarking. I made all possible haste, and on entering the house, 
I addressed the Assessor as being an intimate friend of the consul's, and came 
on purpose to have the honor of the acquaintance of so celebrated and learned 
a man as himself; and I requested his permission to ask him a few questions. 
To this he civilly and mildly answered, Ask what you please ; I shall answer 
all in truth. My first question was, Whether the relation, reported as having 
passed between himself and the queen at Stockholm, was true ^ He answered. 
Tell me in what manner you have heard it related, and I will tell you what part 
of it is true or otherwise. I replied, that as I saw he was on the point of going 
on board the vessel, I supposed there was no time to lose, and therefore desired 
he would have the kindness to relate the affair to me. He consented, and told it 
me in the same manner as I had been informed of it before by means of letters 
from people of credit ; adding, however, the following circumstances : That the 
senator Count SchefTer, came one day to see him, and asked him whether he 
would accompany him to the court next day; Swedenborg inquired why he 
proposed it, as he very well knew he occupied hunself with other concerns than 
going to court. Count Scheffer replied, that the queen, a few days before, had 
received a letter from her sister the Duchess of Brunswick, in which she men- 
tioned a censure or criticism she had read in the gazette of Gottingen, on a man 
at Stockholm, who pretended to speak with the dead; and she wondered much 
that the queen, in her letters to her, had never mentioned a word on that sub- 
ject. The queen then inquired of those present. Whether it was true that there 
was such a man, and whether he was not insane ? To this Count SchefTer an- 
swered. That he was far from insane, but a sensible and learned man. Upon 
this, the queen expressed her wishes of seeing him ; when Count Scheffer said 
that he was intimately acquainted with him, and would propose it to him. The 



TESTIMONY OF GENERAL TUXEN. 59 

count accordingly made Swedenborg promise to accompany him to court, which 
lie did. The king and queen being arrived, entered into conversation with the 
foreign ambassadors, and other principal characters at court, and then ap- 
proached Count Scheffer, who presented Swedenborg. The queen expressed 
her satisfaction at seeing him, and asked him, Whether it was true, that he could 
converse with the deceased .' He answered, Yes. She inquired further. Whether 
it was a science that could be communicated to and by others ? No. What is 
it then? A gift of the Lord. Can you, then, speak with every one deceased, 
or only ^vith certain persons ? He answered, I cannot converse with all, but 
with such as I have known m this world ; with all royal and princely persons, 
with all renowned heroes, or great and learned men, whom I have known, 
either personally, or from their actions or writings ; consequently, with all, of 
whom I could form an idea ; for it may be supposed that a person whom I 
never knew, nor of whom I could form any idea, I neither could nor would wish 
to speak with. The queen then asked him. Whether he would undertake a 
commission to her lately deceased brother ? He answered, with all my heart. 
On this he followed the queen, with the king and Count Scheffer, to a window in 
the apartment, where the queen gave him his commission, to whicii he prom- 
ised to bring her an answer. After this he was invited to the royal table, where 
they put a thousand questions to him, which he answered truly. Some time 
afterwards, Count Scheffer paid him another visit, and asked him whether he 
would accompany him to court again, to which he consented. The queen on 
seeing him, said, Do not forget my commission. He answered. It is already 
done. And when he delivered her his message, she w^as extremely surprised, 
and became suddenly indisposed; and, after some recollection, she said, This 
no mortal could have told me ! On my inquiring whether any person had heard 
what the queen had said when she gave him the commission, he answered, I 
do not know ; yet she did not speak so low but that the king and Count Scheffer, 
if they had attended to it, might have heard it. This m.ay be depended upon, as 
the late venerable man himself related it lo me. 

" In the further course of conversation with him on the principles of religion 
advocated and explained by him, I took an opportunity of asking him. How a 
man, who was confident that he was serious in his duty towards God and his 
neighbor, could be certain, whether he was in the right road to salvation or not ? 
I was answered, That this was very easy ; and that such a man need onl}^ ex- 
amine himself and his own thoughts according to the Ten Commandments; as, 
for instance, whether he loves and fears God ; whether he is happy in seeing 
the welfare of others, and does not envy them ; \yhether, on having received a 
great injury from others, which may have excited. him to anger and to meditate 
revenge, he afterwards changes his sentiments, because God has said, that ven- 
geance belongs to him, and so on; then he may rest assured, that he is on the 
road to heaven ; but when he discovers himself to be actuated by contrary sen- 
timents, on the road to hell. This led me to think of myself as well as of 
others ; and I also asked him. Whether he had seen the lately deceased king, 
Frederick V., adding, that although some human frailty or other might be attrib- 
uted to him, yet 1 had certain hopes that he w^as happy ? His answer was. Yes ; 
I have seen him, and I know that he is very happy, and not only he, but like- 
wise all the kings of the house of Oldcnborg, who are all associated together. 



60 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

" Some time afterwards I was informed that he had returned by way of Got- 
tenburg to Stockholm, and as I had accidentally heard that the consistory had 
begun to examine into a letter written by him to a doctor of divinity at the 
College (Dr. Beyer), which was declared by the dean (Dr. Ekebom) to be hereti- 
cal, I endeavored to obtain the extracts of the minutes that were printed, and 
which were to prove the doctrine of Swedenborg to be erroneous ; but these 
extracts aimed chiefly at blackening the character of Dr. Beyer and a learned 
Dr. Rosen. I therefore wrote to Swedenborg, and requested him to inform me 
concerning these transactions, and received a letter from him in answer, an at- 
tested coppy of which is annexed to these anecdotes of my personal interviews 
with Swedenborg. 

" As I had been so happy for several years as to enjoy the familiar acquaint- 
ance of the younger brother of Count Hopken, Baron Charles Frederic Hopken, 
who was Ambassador at our court from Sweden, and who had been in the like 
capacity at Constantinople, and who was, moreover, a very courteous and 
agreeable nobleman, I embraced an opportunity, after the death of Swedenborg, 
of writing to this eminent man, and of putting several questions to him, which 
he did not directly answer, yet very politely sent me the letters which I have 
much pleasure in sending you ; all which are attested copies. They give a 
faithful account of our late benefactor, and indeed not only of ours, but that of 
all mankind, if they are seriously solicitous about their future state after death. ' 
For my part, I thank our Lord the God of Heaven, that I have been acquainted 
with this great man and his writings. I esteem this as the greatest blessing I 
ever experienced in my life, and I hope T shall profit by them in working out 
my salvation. 

" My valuable guest took his leave of me, for the last time, in a very affection- 
ate manner, and I hope that I shall, in the other life, testify to him my grateful 
heart. — I am, with all respect, yours, &c.. 

Christian Tuxen. 
" Elsineur, May 4, 1790." 



Letter from Emanuel Sivedenborg to General Tuxen 

" Sir, 

" I received your letter of March 4th, by Lieut. Tuxen your son, who did me 
the pleasure of paying me a visit. My duty demanded a speedier answer; but 
as I waited for the conclusion of the affair at Gottenburg, in order to communi- 
cate something of it to you, I have from time to time postponed it. I have suf- 
fered this matter, and all the invectives used against me at Gottenburg, to come 
to an end : and I have since sent the chancellor of justice, and the senator Eke- 
blad, a copy of the annexed, by means of which I effected a change in the 
business, of which I shall inform you some other time. The affair took its rise, 
at Gottenburg, from the dean ; the deputies of that city having been instructed to 
complain of me and Dr. Beyer to the diet, they pushed matters as far as they 
could, but would never have effected anything, unless the bishop, Filenius, who 
was then president qf the clerical order, had taken upon himself the management 
of it, and in a crafty manner gained over some members of the order, which the 



TESTIMONY OF C. SPRINGER, ESQ. 61 

bishop first did from a secret dislike, but afterwards out of inveteracy. For this 
reason a committee was appointed by the order of clergy on the Swedenborgian 
cause. Whilst they were deliberating on this subject, I was not suffered to be 
present, but it was all carried on clandestinely ; yet the committee (which con- 
sisted of bishops and professors,) found the matter quite different from what 
bishop Filenius had represented it : they terminated it in my favor, and, in their 
report to the order, expressed themselves in regard to myself very handsomely 
and reasonably. But thus far bishop Filenius prevailed, that a memorial should 
be presented to his majesty and council, that the chancellor of justice might ap- 
pease the troubles arisen at Gottenburg. In conse([uence of this, a letter was 
addressed by the chancellor to the consistories, to desire their opinion ; and this 
occasioned the subject to be afterwards agitated in the chamber of council for 
two days ; and it was then I presented the memorial annexed, which has also 
been discussed, and concluded in such a manner, that the chancellor of justice 
wrote to the consistory of Gottenburg, which is not against me, and the particu- 
lars of which I shall at another time communicate. I knew nothing of all this, 
whilst it was agitating ; but, enjoying the calm in my chamber, I let the storm 
rage without as mucii as it pleased ; for it was agreed both at the diet, and in 
the council, not to touch my person. I send you the inclosed copy, which I 
have also presented to the council, in order that it may be communicated to the 
Counts Bernstorff and Thott, whereby they may see the state of affairs, lest the 
printed protocols of Gottenburg, which are filled with invectives, should ope- 
rate against the good opinion they before had of me. If the inclosed could also 
be translated into German, and printed in Hamburg, it would give me pleasure. 
In the month of June next, I intend to set out for Amsterdam, where I am to 
publish the Universal Theology of the New Church. If the ship then remains some 
time off Elsineur, I shall have the pleasure of coming to your house, to wish 
yourself, your dear lady and children, all possible happiness. — I remain, in all 
affection, familiarity and friendship, Sir, your most obedient servant, 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Stockholm, May 1st, 1770." 



IX. 

TESTIMONY OF C. SPEINGEE, Esq., 

SWEDISH CONSUL AT THE PORT OF LONDON, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG. 



This gentleman was many years the intimate friend of Swedenborg, both in Sweden 
and in England. He was known to many of the early readers of Swedenborg's works in 
this country, and has left the strongest testimony to the worth and extraordinary char- 
acter of his friend. 

The following is a letter, which Mr. Springer addressed to the Abbe Pernetti, librari- 
an to the king of Prussia, who had written to Mr. S., wishing to receive information con- 
cerning Swedenborg's works, and to ascertain what he knew respecting him . — 



62 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

« Sir, 

" By the letter with which you have honored me, dated Berhn the 6th of 
December last, which came late to hand, I perceive that you desire to have some 
of the works pubhshed by the late Assessor, Emamiel Swedenborg; as also a 
relation of the particulars that passed at my meeting with him during his life- 
time ; and that my friends, Messrs. de Nordenskjold, have directed you to me 
for such information : in regard to which, I shall satisfy your desires on those 
heads, so far as my strength and sight will permit me, which have failed me 
considerably within the last two years, and which, on my approaching near to 
my seventy-ninth year, is indeed less to be wondered at. 

" It is to be observed, that Assessor Swedenborg was not a count, but a simple 
gentleman up to the year 1719. His father, Jasper Swedberg, was bishop of 
Skara, and a man of great learning ; but this Emanuel Swedenborg was gifted of 
God with greater endowments. His knowledge and sincerity were both very 
remarkable. He was constant in friendship, extremely sober in his diet, and 
plain in his clothing. His common food was bread and butter, and milk and 
coffee ; yet at times he was wont to eat a little fish, but very seldom any meat; 
he never drank above two glasses of wine, and that only in company. He dis- 
regarded places of honor, and therefore determined, about the year 1746, to re- 
quest his discharge from the place he had so long occupied : but the king 
granted him, as a pension, the salary of his office, which he enjoyed to the time 
of his decease. It gives me a very particular pleasure to understand that you, 
Sir, intend to translate some of his works, to the intent that they ma}'' become 
more generally Itnown; and that you propose beginning with that entitled. 
Arcana Ccciestia. It is in eight vols., and sells for eight guineas. His last tract, 
entitled, Coronis seu Appendix ad Veram Christianam Religionem., sells for two shil- 
lings. The expense for the carriage may be about three shillings more, so that 
the total will amount to eight pounds thirteen shillings. An opportunity of 
sending them by Hamburg may be found during any month in the year. 

" I waited. Sir, on the Count de Luzi, and informed him of your commission 
to me respecting these books. He told me, that he had not received any ad- 
vice, but as he was well acquainted with you it was sufficient, and that he 
w-ould take upon him to advance the money for the purchase of the books ; 
adding afterwards, that it might not be amiss, that you should be informed of 
the high price of them before they were sent. It will, therefore, entirely depend 
upon you. Sir, to inform me whether you wish to have them sent. 

" I apprehend. Sir, that you must be possessed, of another Latin work of the 
late Swedenborg, entitled, De Calo et Inferno. 1 could wish, nevertheless, that 
you were also possessed of the English translation of that work, which was 
performed by the learned doctor in divinity, Thomas Hartley : in the margin of 
that work are to be met with notes and observations of the translator. His trea- 
tise cost ten shillings. 

" This Dr. Hartley has likewise translated into English, with notes and learned 
observations, a small treatise of the late Swedenborg, entitled, A Theosophic Lu- 
cubration on the nature of Influx ^ as it respects the Communication and Operation of the 
Soul and Body, in 4to. The price of that translation is two shillings and six- 
pence : it concludes with a letter from Swedenborg to Dr. Hartley, concerning 
his family and connexions. 



TESTIMONY OF C. SPRINGER, ESQ. 63 

" There is also a small volume in 8vo., the Latin title of which is, Nova Hiero- 
solyma, &c. This also has been translated into English, but is imperfect.* The 
Latin copy, is therefore more worthy of perusal on this account, than that edition. 
It may not be amiss to observe, that although this translation is imperfect, there 
is not, as I am informed, a copy to be sold. As to the Arcana Ca^lestia, I am told 
that there are but two sets of the volumes to be met with ; one of which I have 
retained for your service. 

"I shall now proceed to satisfy the desire you have. Sir, of being informed of 
the discourses I had with the late venerable Swedenborg, as well by ourselves, 
as in the presence of others ; but I must here observe, that as these discourses 
Avere numerous, it would be too difficult to relate the whole. 

"It is certain, that two or three weeks before his decease, and not two or three 
days (as his opponents insinuate), I asked him, when he believed that the New 
Jerusalem, or the New Church of the Lord, would be manifested, and if this 
raanifestation would take place in the four quarters of the world ? His answer 
was, that no mortal could declare the time, no, not even the celestial angels ; 
and that it was solely known to God. Read, said he, the Revelations, chap. xxi. 
2, and Zechariah, chap. xiv. 9, and you will find, that it is not to be doubted, 
but that the New Jerusalem mentioned in the Apocalypse, which denotes a new 
and purer state of the Christian Church than has hitherto existed, will manifest 
itself to all the earth. I questioned him also concerning the letter that was writ- 
ten by the queen of Sweden to her brother the deceased Margrave ; he replied, 
much of the common report is true, and part of it not; but perhaps the whole 
of the matter is better known at Berlin than in other parts. I then asked him 
whether it was true, as I was informed it was, that when he was at Gottenburg 
(a town about sixty Swedish miles from Stockholm), he had foretold to his 
friends, three days before the arrival of the post, the particular hour of the be- 
ginning of the great fire that happened at Stockholm ; to which he replied, that 
it was exactly true. I put to him also many questions concerning Charles the 
XII. of Sweden, and received surprising answers from him on that head. 

" 1 shall now proceed to relate to you, Sir, what I have seen and heard of him. 
Fifteen years ago, Swedenborg was about to depart for Sweden, and desired me 
to procure him a good captain, v/hich I did. I made the agreement with a 
person named Dixon. Swedenborg's effects were carried on board the vessel, 
and as his apartments were at some distance from the port, we took for that 
night a cham.ber at an inn near it, because the captain of the vessel was to come 
and fetch him in the morning. He went to bed ; and I went to sit in another 
room with the master of the house, with whom I was conversing. We both 
heard a remarkable noise, and could not apprehend what it could be ; and 
therefore drew near to a door, where there was a litde window that looked into 
the chamber where Swedenborg lay. We saw him with his hands raised to- 
wards heaven, and his body appeared to tremble. f He spoke much for the 
space of half an hour, but we could understand nothing of what he said, except 

* The extracts from the Arcana Caslcstia were omitted in that edition. 

t It may be very easily supposed, that when Swedenborg had a very full and interior 
communication with spirits, the effects of such communication would be visible in his 
external look and deportment. As, however, he lived much in retirement, these effecfs 
could not, of course, be often seen by others. 



64 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

that, when he let his hands fall down, we heard him say with a loud voice. My 
God ! But we could not hear what he said more. He remained afterwards very 
quietly in his bed. I entered into the chamber with the master of the house, 
and asked him if he was ill. No, said he ; but I have had a long discourse with 
some of the heavenly friends, and am at this time in a great perspiration. And 
as his effects were embarked on board the vessel, he asked the master of the 
house to let him have a shirt; he then went again to bed and slept till morning. 
" When the captain of the vessel came to fetch Swedenborg, I took my leave 
of him, and wished him a happy voyage : having then asked the captain if he 
was provided with good and necessary provisions, he answered me, that he had 
as much as was needful for the voyage. On this Swedenborg said, ' My friend, 
we have not need of a great quantity ; for this day week we shall, by the aid 
of God, enter into the port of Stockholm at two o'clock.' On Captain Dixon's 
return, he related to me that this happened exactly as Swedenborg had foretold. 
"Two years afterwards, Swedenborg returned to London, where we continued 
our ancient friendship. He informed me that he had sent his works to the Swe- 
dish bishops, but without fruit, and that they were received by them with the 
same indifference as he had experienced on the part of the English bishops. I 
observed a remarkable change amongst the bishops in London; for before, his 
voyage to Sweden, they received his works with indifference, but after it, with 
great respect. I asked him whence this change happened ? He replied, ' God 
knows the time when His church ought to commence.' 

" His intimate friends here were the doctor in divinity, Thomas Hartley ; the 
deceased doctor in philosophy, Hampe, a learned man, who was preceptor to 
George L; and the doctor in medicine, Messiter : But Dr. Hartley, a man of pro- 
found learning and a true servant of God, was his most intimate friend. It was 
he who translated into English (as was observed above,) the work of Sweden- 
borg, entitled, J)e CcEloet Inferno, with the learned observations thereon; as also 
that which is entitled, A Theosophic Lucubration on the nature of Influx, with notes 
of a like kind. This doctor is still alive, but far advanced in years. 

" As to what relates to myself, I cannot, Sir, point out the reason of Sweden- 
borg's great regard for me, who am not a man of literature. It is true that we 
were good friends in Sweden, but that this friendship should have continued be- 
tween us with such constancy as it did, is what I did not expect. 

*' The whole of what he has related to me, concerning my deceased friends 
and enemies, and of the secrets w^iich existed only between them and me, is al- 
most past belief. He even explained to me in what manner the peace was con- 
cluded between Sweden and the King of Prussia ; and praised my conduct on 
that occasion. He pointed out to me the three great personages whose services 
I made use of in that circumstance, which was, nevertheless a great secret be- 
twixt us. I asked him how he could be instructed of these particulars, and who 
had discovered them to him ; to which he replied, ' Who informed me of your 
affair with Count de C — E — d ? You cannot deny the truth of what I have just 
related to you. Continue (added he) to merit his reproaches ; depart not from 
the good way, either for honors or money ; but, on the contrary, continue as 
constant therein as you have been hitherto, and you will prosper.' 

" I wish, Sir, that I was capable of reporting to you all that he told me ; but I 
must finish my letter ui assuring you of the esteem with which I am, yours, &c., 
" London, January 18th, 1782." «* C. Springer. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM. 65 

X. 
ANECDOTES 
COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM, 

DIRECTOR OF THE BANK OF STOCKHOLM, 
CONCERNING THE 

LIFE OF SWEDENBORG WHEN AT HOME. 



Mr. Robsahm, who was also one of the intimate friends of Swedenborg, collected, 
shortly after his decease, a number of anecdotes concerning Swedenborg's life at home, 
which he published in a pamphlet, and which, although not of much importance, may 
nevertheless be read with interest by those who desire to know everything that can be 
known concerning the life of so extraordinary a man. 

Mr. R. commences thus: 

" Swedenborg was assessor of the Metallic College, and member of the Acad- 
emy of Sciences in Sweden. The little regard he had for titles of honor and hu- 
man grandeur, made him determine, after he began to devote himself exclusively 
to spiritual studies, to request his dismission from the office of assessor, the du- 
ties of which he had punctually fulfilled for about thirty years. He had a house 
in the environs of Stockholm. It was built and arranged after his own taste ; 
the apartments were rather small, but suitable to himself. Although he was a 
man of most profound learning, no other books were seen in his study than the 
Hebrew and Greek Bible, together with his own indexes of his works, whereby 
he saved himself the trouble, when referring to different passages, of going 
through all which he had before written. 

"Adjoining to the house was a pretty large garden, in the midst of which he 
had a summer-house, or pavilion ; there were four doors to the apartment which 
formed a square, which was occasionally turned, in an instant, into an octagon 
form, by the means of four other doors which belonged to it. One of these doors 
shut with a secret lock, which being opened, there appeared a glass door placed 
opposite a fine green hedge, where a bird was seen in a cage. This new spec, 
tacle produced an agreeable surprise of a second garden to the person who 
opened the door, which Swedenborg related to be more agreeable than the first. 
At the entrance of the garden there was a parterre ^^xll covered with flowers, 
which he was very fond of. He derived no other advantage from the garden, 
for he gave the whole produce of it to the gardener who waited on him ; as also 
that of a very handsome green-house, in which he took much pleasure. 

" The gardener and his wife were the only servants he had ; of the latter he 
never desired other service than that of making his bed, and of bringing water 
into his first apartment ; he generally made his own cofi'ee on the fire in his 
study, and took much of it well sweetened ; and when at home his dinner con- 
sisted of a small loaf put into boiled milk, and at that time he neither drank 
wine nor any spirituous liquor, nor did he take any supper : though he was 
very sparing in his eating and drinking, yet he would sometimes, when in com- 
5 



m DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

pany, enjoy a moderate glass, but was always in one equal temper of mind,- 
and cheerful. 

" He had a fire constantly kept up in his study from autumn, through the- 
whole winter, until spring, but his bed-room was (contrary to the usual custom 
in Sweden) always cold; and according as the cold was more or less severe, he 
made use of three, or four blankets. When he awoke he went into his study^ 
where there were always live coals, on which he laid wood with birch rind ;, 
having a number of little bundles ready for convenience, and to make a quick 
fire before he set himself down to write. 

•' In his parlor was a table of black marble, on which one would have sup- 
posed, at first sight, that a hand of cards had been carelessly thrown, it being so 
well imitated. He made a present of this table to the Royal College of Mines, 
who preserve it with great care. This room was neat and genteel, but furnished 
in a plain style. 

" His wardrobe was simple, yet suitable to the season. He wore in wdnter 
a fur gO'Wn, and when at home in summer a morning robe. He usually spoke 
very distinctly : when he began to talk in company every one was silent, as well 
from the pleasure they had of hearing his discourse, as from a sense of his well 
known great erudition, which he did not show but on occasions in which he 
found himself compelled tO' prove his assertions, or the little weight of argument 
of some with whom he conversed. Besides the learned languages, in which he 
was well versed, he understood the French^ English, Dutch, German,-and Italian,, 
having often travelled in those countries. 

" In general, he would not enter into dispute on matters of religion : if he was 
necessitated to defend himself, he did it with mildness and in few words; but if 
any one would not be convinced, and became warm in argument, he retired,, 
saying, ' Read my writings attentively and without prejudice, they will answer 
you in na-y stead, and will afford you reason to change your ideas and opinions 
on such things.' 

" He used, at first, freely to speak of his visions and spiritual explications of the 
Scriptures; but as this displeased the clergy, who proclaimed him a heretic and 
madman, he resolved to be less communicative of his knowledge in company, 
or, at least, more cautious, lest the censorious should have room to blame what 
they could not comprehend like himself. Mr. Robsahm once addressed the 
rector of the parish where he lived (an old and respectable clergyman), asking 
him what he should think of Svvedenborg's visions and explanations of the 
Bible? The venerable man answ^ered, ' God alone can judge of this, but I can- 
not think him to be such a person as many do : I have myself conversed with 
him, and in companies where we have been together, I have found him to be 
a good and holy man.' 

" It was remarkable, that Swedenborg never endeavored to persuade any 
person to receive his ophiions ; he was once asked, whether it might be possible 
for any one, but himse-lf, to arrive at the same degree of spirituahty ; he replied, 
'Take good care, for the natural man lays himself open to temptations, when, 
by his own speculations, he tries to find out celestial things that transcend his 
understanding.' He then declared, how the Lord has taught us in the Lord's 
Prayer to pray, Lead us not into temptation,- which means, that we ought not, from 
our own po^>ver and knowledge, to doubt of the divine truths revealed to us ? 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM. 67 

* 1 never thought,' added he,' I should have come into the spiritual state in which 
1 am; but the Lord had prepared me for it, in order to reveal the Spiritual Sense 
of the Word, Avhich he had promised in the Prophets and the Revelations.' 

"An ecclesiastic, who was a follower of Zinzendorf, and a doctor of divinity 
in Gottenburg, undertook to oppose the writings of Swedenborg ; but after 
having first begun by asserting that he had not read those writings, he went on 
with his preliminary discourse, using the grossest invectives, and the most 
malignant and scandalous expressions, even against Swedenborg's person ; unto 
which Swedenborg replied with so much modesty and mildness, without taking 
notice of his antagonist's person, that all applauded both the substance of what 
he said, and the manner in which he conducted himself. 

" A certain critic, who is well known for observing but little decorum in his 
expressions, as well on the writings of an author as on the author himself, also 
undertook a bitter invective against his writings. The reply Swedenborg made 
to it, was very short ; it was printed only to communicate to his friends, and 
drawn up in the following terms : ' I have read what Dr. E. has related of me in 
his Theologica Bibliotheca, p. 704, and find the same to contain the grossest scan- 
dals agamst my person. I have not met therein with a grain of pure reason 
against any particular passage in my writings, and m.ust observe, that to attack 
any person with envenomed daggers in such a manner, is against all laws of 
justice; and therefore I deem it but an indignity to use such kind of arguments 
in reply to my opponent, as engaging in them would be more like two women 
of the lowest class, who, in scolding, cast dirt into one another's faces, than any- 
thing else. Read, if you please, what is published in my last work, entitled, 
Vera Christiana Religio, of those arcana, which were discovered by me from the 
Lord, at No. 846 to 851, or page 492 to 502, and afterwards conolude, yet from 
an unprejudiced reason, respecting my revelation,' Moreover, there is some 
account of this person to be found in a memorable relation, inserted in the above- 
mentioned work, at No. 137, p. 105 to 108 ; which may be read by any that 
wish to be further informed. 

" It is a very singular circumstance, that almost all who have read the writings 
of Swedenborg, with a design to refute them, have finished the attempt by 
adhering to his sentiments. 

" He was in nowise led by that self-love, which is observable in those who 
publish new opinions concerning church doctrines ; neither did he seek to make 
any proselytes, not even communicating his thoughts and sentiments, but to 
those whom he thought virtuous, disposed to hear them with moderation, capa- 
ble of comprehending them, and lovers of truth. 

'•' He explained to Mr. Robsahm, the reason why the clergy at that time were 
so unwilling to receive his interpretations of the Scriptures. ' It is,' said he, ' be- 
cause they confirm themselves in the doctrine of faith alone, from the schools, 
the colleges, and the universities ; and having confirmed themselves in some 
evil, do not see that evil as evil, but find every day more pleasure in it, and vice 
versa. Besides,' added he, ' although they see and find that I speak truth, their 
ambition to preserve their reputation in the world, will not suffer them publicly 
to profess what they are convinced to be irrefutable truths.' Tiiis conversation 
passed just after Swedenborg had been visited by the famous clergyman Dr. 
Rutstrom, who died in his confinement in the palace of Stockholm, a little while 



68 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

after the revolution in 1772. Swedenborg said, that Mr. Rutstrom acknowledged 
it all ; but his life and actions proved, that he held his own tenets dearest to him. 
The chaplain to the Russian embassy, Mr. Oronoskull, a monk of the order of 
Alexander Newsky, who was at Stockholm with the ambassador Count Oster- 
man, led a very orderly and decent life (contrary to the usual custom of many 
Russian priests) ; he borrowed Swedenborg's works, which he read with great 
pleasure ; he was likewise anxious to see and converse with such an extraordi- 
nary man. Mr. Robsahm fulfilled his desire, and invited him and Swedenborg 
to dinner, in company with the late president of the Royal College of Commerce, 
Mr. V, Carleson, the counsellor of the Chancery, Mr Berck, and some other 
gentlemen. During dinner, the priest, among other things, asked of Sweden- 
borg, whether he had seen the Empress Elizabeth. He replied, I have often 
seen her, and I know she is in a very happy state. These words occasioned 
the priest to shed tears of joy. Her good sentiments towards her people, said 
Swedenborg, were after her decease known in the other life ; for there it was 
declared, that she never went into the council without praying to God for ad- 
vice and assistance to govern her country and people with wisdom and equity. 
This discourse so much affected the priest, that he indicated by his silence and 
tears his happy surprise. 

"Mr. Robsahm hav-ing asked of the wife of Swedenborg's gardener, if she had 
ever observed any change in the countenance of her master, soon after he had 
conversed with spirits ; to this she replied : ' Entering one day, after dinner, into 
his chamber, I saw his eyes like unto a most bright flame : I drew back, saying, 
in the name of God, Sir, what has happened extraordinary to you, for you havp 
a very particular kind of appearance ? What kind of look have I ? answered he. 
I then told him what had struck me. Well, well, replied he (which was his 
favorite expression), don't be frightened ; the Lord has so disposed my eyes, 
that by them spirits may see what is in our world. In a short time this appear- 
ance passed away, as he said it would. I know,' said she, ' when he has con- 
versed with heavenly spirits, for there is a pleasure and calm satisfaction in his 
countenance, which charms those who see it ; but after he has conversed with 
evil spirits, he has a sorrowful look.' 

" Concerning his temptations, it has been mentioned by his honest servants^ 
the old gardener and his wife, that their master in the night time often spoke 
aloud, when the evil spirits w^ere with him, which they could easily hear, their 
room being adjoining. When asked what caused his disturbance in the night, 
he answered, that it had been permitted the evil spirits to blaspheme, and that 
he had spoken against them zealously. It happened often, that, weeping bitterly, 
he cried with a loud voice, and prayed to the Lord that he might not be forsaken 
in his temptation which then assailed him. His words were. Lord, heli^ me ! 
Lord, my God, do not forsake me ! Those who saw him in these states supposed 
he was sick ; but when delivered from them, he returned thanks to God, and told 
those who were troubled for him, God be eternally praised ! comfort yourselves, 
my friends, all has disappeared or passed away ; and be assured, that nothing 
happens to me, but what the Lord permits, who never lays on us a burden more 
weighty than we are able to bear. 

" Once it was remarkable, that after such a state he went to bed, and did not 
rise for several days and nights. This gave his domestics much uneasiness • 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM. 6» 

they consulted together, and supposed he was dead, from some great fright. 
They intended to break open the door, or to assemble their friends. At last the 
man went to the window, and discovered, to his great joy, that his master was 
alive, turning in his bed ; and the next day he rang his bell. The woman went 
in, and related her own. and her husband's uneasiness for him ; he told her with 
a cheerful countenance, that he had been very well, and in want of nothing. 

" On arriving at Gottenburg from London, he was told that his house had been 
destroyed by the flames, in the great fire that burnt almgst all the south suburbs 
of Stockholm, in 1756. No, answered Swedenborg, my house is not burnt; the 
fire only reached to such and such a part. What he said was true ; and the 
circumstance was then of so recent a nature, that he could have had no particu- 
lar account of it, either by letter or by any person. It likewise appears tiiat he 
had predicted that such a fire would happen. 

" One day a prisoner was publicly executed ; Mr. Robsahm went in the even- 
ing to visit Swedenborg, and asked him, how a malefactor, in the moment of 
his execution, finds himself on entering the world of spirits ? He answered ; 
when he lays his head on the block, he loses his senses, and that, after the be- 
heading, when the spirit enters the world of spirits, the prisoner finds himself 
alive, tries to make his escape, is in expectation of death, and in a great fright, 
as thinking either on the happiness of heaven, or the miseries of hell in that 
moment. At last, such a one is associated with the good spirits, who discover 
to him, that he is really departed from the natural world. And then he is left 
to the exercise of his own inclinations, which lead him to the eternal place of 
his abode.* Swedenborg added, that a man ripened in evil, whom the law and 
the axe, or halter, removes from earth, although apparently repenting, always 
remains evil to eternity ; because his conversion is forced, and not performed 
out of his own free will, which God requires. For unless his crimes had thrown 
him into prison, where he sees death impending, he would not have turned his 
thoughts to God, much less his heart, which is hardened by custom to a wicked 
life ; and perceiving himself, after death, to live as before, he rushes headlong 
into the same wicked practices, as he did in the world, and thus is quickly led 
on to the hell, with the spirits of which he was in conjunction while on earth. 
It is a very different case, added he, with those who, indeed, are executed for 
some crime, which they have committed in drunkenness or passion, but with- 
out any design; such persons repent earnesdy of their actions; and unless they 
have,' in the course of their life, confirmed themselves in opposition to the com- 
mandments of God, they become after death, when divested of their infirmities, 
happy spirits. 

"Although Swedenborg openly avowed and maintained the most profound 
veneration for the Sacred Scriptures; although he never supported one principle 
contrary to the decalogue, or a good Christian life ; although his conduct was ex- 
emplary ; and although he never s[)oke either against the government or particular 
persons, he was not exempted from persecutions ; he fo und enemies so determin- 
ed to do him mischief, that he deemed it necessary to leave the capital that he 
might not fall into their hands. A young man, in particular, went even to his 
own house, with a design to assassinate him; the gardener's wife told him that 

* This transformation is amply described in his Treatise of Heaven and Hell. 



70 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

Swedenborg was not at home, lest mischief should follow. But he would not 
believe her, and ran into the garden, thinking to find him. God, however, who 
kept him under his especial protection, encompassed him on this occasion ; for 
the young man being in haste to get in, a nail that was in the lock fastened so 
to the cloak with which he was covered, that he could not disentangle himself, 
and his naked sword fell from beneath the cloak out of his hands : thus greatly- 
embarrassed, the fear of being discovered seized him, and he retired with all 
possible haste. This same person was afterwards killed in a duel. 

" His writings raised him many enemies amongst the clergy, who found vari- 
ous pretences to persecute him. At the time of the meeting of the four houses, 
called the diet, which was held in the year 1769, at Norkjoping, Swedenborg 
had a box sent from England, containing some of his printed works ; these were 
stopped for examinaiion, according to the laws which prohibit the introduction of 
all books reputed contrary to the Protestant Religion. Swedenborg desired, there- 
fore, the favor of Bishop Filenius, his nephew, and member in the house of the 
clergy, to get this box returned to him, as he intended to make presents of these 
books to the several members of the houses : notwithstanding the bishop cor- 
dially promised it, and, at the same time, embraced and kissed Swedenborg, yet 
this very man did everything in his power to get these works confiscated. Swe- 
denborg used afterwards to call him Judas Iscariot, because he had deceived 
him with kissing, when he would have been satisfied with a blunt refusal, and, 
therefore, could not help expressing his displeasure at such deceitful behavior, 
being conscious that every person who knew him and his works, must allow, 
that he always insisted on a good life, with integrity in all our dealings ; that 
charity must be united with faith ; and that charity consists not only in thinking 
no ill and speaking no ill of our neighbor, even in doubtful cases, where the 
intention is not evidently bad, but that we must primarily keep in view the 
necessity of promoting good uses, peace, love, and true knowledge. God, being 
truth and sincerity Itself, cannot but abhor all falsehood and deceit, because 
they spring from impure motives, such as worldly-fear, self-interest, vanity, and 
no trust in Providence ; and as God is love Itself, he cannot but abominate every- 
thing that tends to destroy the true peace and happiness of mankind. 

" That very year, at the same assembly, some members of the house of the 
clergy, had artfully laid a scheme, that our author should be examined, and, after 
examination, be declared as a man out of his senses, whom it was dangerous 
to leave at liberty, but that he ought to be imprisoned as a lunatic. A certain 
senator,* and friend to Swedenborg, disclosed to him the whole plot, and advised 
him to leave the kingdom. At this news Swedenborg appeared much afflicted 
and going into his garden, fell on his knees, and prayed to the Lord to direct him 
what to do. After this prayer he received this consolatory answer, That no evil 
should touch him. This really happened, as his enemies were afraid to execute 
their persecution, when they considered his being a member in the house of 
nobles, and related to many of the nobility and dignified clergy ; however, he 
soon after undertook another voyage, but being informed, on his return, of the 
evil intentions and malice of his persecutors, and, being instructed by experience 
of what they were capable, he addressed himself to the king, in the following 
terms, drawn up in the form of a letter : — 

* The Senator Count Hopken. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. KOBSAHM. '^ 

" T find myself necessitated at this period to have recourse to your majesty's 
protection, having met with usage of such a nature, as no other person has ex- 
perienced since the establishment of Christianity in Sweden, and much less since 
there has been liberty of conscience. The following is an abridgment of the 
particulars that are the occasion of my requesting your Majesty's interference 
— On my arrival in Sweden from foreign parts, T was informed, that Bishop 
Filenius had suppressed and seized Uie copies of my treatise, De Amove Conju- 
giali, which I had printed in Holland, and which were sent to Norkjoping. 
Havin.g inquired of some bishops, whether Bishop F. ha<l acted in this manner 
from his own authority, or from that of the clerical body, they replied, that they 
liad heard of the affair, but that none of them had been consulted about it, or 
had given his consent thereto ; and that there was not one word set down in the 
journal of the ecclesiastical court concerning it. Some ecclesiastics at Gotten- 
burg, being emboldened by this inconsiderate and violent conduct of the bishops, 
tegan to speak and declaim loudly against my WTitings, and so far succeeded 
as to have an assembly appointed for their examination, consisting of some 
bishops and professors in divinity. This assembly continued sitting for the 
space of some months, and at length made a favorable report, which stopped 
the mouths of those accusers at once ; their attempts were then thought to cease, 
and the affair to have an end. To prevent all thought of its being re-kindled, it 
was concluded, that a petition should be presented to your majesty, to issue 
orders to the chancellor of justice, to give an information of the authors who had 
raised the disturbance at Gottenburg. The bishop and deacon of that place, 
who w^ere the principal movers in this affair, seeing the little success of their 
project to engage the body of the clergy, to light up the fire for which they had 
made ready the materials, had recourse to calumnies and injuries, and filled 
twenty printed leaves with invectives, which they circulated amongst the 
public. I was farther informed, that your majesty, hearing of this dispute, took 
it under your own consideration, decided it in the senate, and ordered the chan- 
cellor to forward letters relative thereto to the consistory a;t Gottenburg. 

" I Lad no notice sent me of all these proceedings; my person, writings, and 
sentiments on the worship of the Lord our Saviour, w^ere attacked and persecuted, 
and I have neither been called to make my defence, nor been heard respecting 
it: but truth itself has answered for me. The accounts that were published at 
Gottenburg on this matter, did not touch the substance of the cause, and were 
filled with invectives and gross injuries. The first account I had of these 
papers, was from a general commissary of war at Elsineur,* and a friend at 
Stockholm, who lent them to me for a day; and I found therein two letters of 
Bishop Filenius, wherein it is said, that he should meddle no more in it. I am 
desirous to convince the world, that all these proceedings, from their beginning 
to their end, have been carried on without my having ever been heard. A 
rumor has, nevertheless, spread throughout Stockholm, that the chancellor of 
justice has declared in writing to the consistory at Gottenburg, that my works 
are prohibited from being brought into that place, under the penalty of fifty 
dollars ; and that my writings have been declared false, and not true. I have 

* General Tuxea, mentioned abov<?> 



72 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

already informed your majesty, and beseech you to recall it to mind, that the Lord 
our Saviour manifested himself to me in a sensible personal appearance ; that he 
has commanded me to write what has been already done, and what I have still 
to do ; that he was afterwards graciously pleased to endow me with the privi- 
lege of conversing with angels and spirits, and to be in fellowship with them. I 
have already declared this more than once to your majesty, in the presence of 
all the royal family, when they were graciously pleased to invite me to their 
table with five senators, and several other persons ; this was the only subject 
discoursed of during the repast. Of this I also spoke afterwards to several other 
senators ; and more openly to their excellencies Count de Tessin, Count Bonde, 
and Count Hdpken, who are still alive, and were satisfied with the truth of it. 
I have declared the same in England, Holland, Germany, Denmark, and at Paris, 
to kings, princes, and other particular persons, as well as to those in this king- 
dom. If the common report is beUeved, the chancellor has declared, that what 
I have been reciting are untruths, although the very truth. To say that they 
cannot believe and give credit to such things, therein will I excuse them, for it 
is not in my power to place others in the same state in which God has placed 
me, so as to be able to convince them, by their own eyes and ears, of the truth 
of those deeds and things I pubhcly have made known. I have no ability to 
capacitate them to converse with angels and spirits, neither to work miracles to 
dispose, or force their understandings to comprehend what I say. When my 
writhigs are read with attention and cool reflection (in which many things are 
to be met with as hitherto unknown), it is easy enough to conclude, that 1 could 
not come to such knowledge, but by a real vision, and by conversing with those 
who are in the spiritual world. Asa farther proof, T besefech* their excellencies 
to peruse what is contained in my treatise on Conjugial Love, page 314 to 316. 
This book is in the hands of Count de Ekeblad, and Count de Bjelke. If any 
doubt shall still remain, I am ready to testify with the most solemn oath that can 
be offered in this matter, that I have said nothing but essential and real truth, 
without any mixture of deception. This knowledge is given to me from our 
Saviour, not for any particular merit of mine, but for the great concern of all 
Christians' salvation and happiness ; and as such, how can any venture to assert 
it as false .' That these things may appear such as many have had no concep- 
tion of, and of consequence, that they cannot easily credit, it has nothing re- 
markable in it, for scarce anything is known respecting them. 

"If it is true, that the chancellor has written to the consistory at Gottenburg, 
in the terms which! have related from the public rumor, it will give occasion to 
conclude, that my writings contain errors, and that what I have declared to be 
revealed to me are falsities, which can in nowise be proved, unless construed 
into a sense I never intended. In such a case, according to the laws on that 
head, I might be arrested and shut up in prison, and all this without being heard 
in my own defence. This is the motive for my having recourse to your majesty 
for protection ; for since the establishment of Christianity and liberty in our coun- 
try, it is a thing altogether unheard of, that any person has been proceeded against 
in the manner they have against me. 

''On this important affair, which concerns not only my writings but also 



* At that time the king only presided in the senate, to which body at large he there- 
fore addressed this letter. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM. TJ 

my person and reputation, I humbly request your majesty, that the reverend 
clergy may deliver their opinion to yourself on that matter, likewise the minutes 
of the council which examined the writings, and the letter said to be forwarded 
by the chancellor of justice to the consistory at Gottenburg, to the intent that 1 
may be informed thereof, and, as well as others of your majesty's subjects, be 
enabled to make a suitable reply, and heard in my own defence, possessing the 
like right and privileges to require it. 

" As to what relates to the Drs. Beyer and Rosen of Gottenburg, I advised 
them to nothing, but to address themselves to our Lord and Saviour Jesus 
Christ, as a means of attaining to heavenly good and blessedness, for he only 
has power in heaven and on earth, as declared in Matthew xxviii. 18. As far as 
I have been able to learn, they have said no more. This is conformable to 
the Augsburg confession, the Formula Concordm, and the whole of Sacred Writ. 
Yet these gentlemen have become no less objects of the most cruel persecutions 
than myself, arising from the enmity of the bishop and dean of that town. I 
can say the same of my writings, which I regard as another self; and that all that 
this dean has laid to my charge is mere scandal and falsehood. I have farther to 
entreat, that the two letters adjoining to this, which I wrote to Dr. Beyer con- 
cerning this business, may be read.* 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 

" Stockholm, May 10, 1770." 

" It is well known by many living witnesses, that Swedenborg, after his ex- 
traordinary call to be an instructor of mankind, dedicated himself entirely to the 
great work which was assigned him. The future part of his life was spent, 
agreeably to the high commission he had received, in studying diligently the 
Word of God, in opening and elucidating the great truths therein contained, and 
in publishing them to his fellow-creatures, together with the important informa- 
tion made known to him concerning another world. For this purpose, he fre- 
quently left his native country to visit distant cities, particularly London and Am- 
sterdam, where all his theological works were printed by him at a great expense, 
and with little prospect or probability of a reimbursement. 

" It is in the writings of the studious and contemplative that we must read 
their lives, and learn what they were; and if we look at Swedenborg in this 



* In Swedenborg's letter to Hartley (see p. 36), we ha^e seen it stated, by Sweden- 
borg, that up to the year 1769 he had suffered no persecution in his own country, but 
that he was on the most friendly terms with the bishops and senators, many of whom 
he had frequently informed respecting his extraordinary state, as having his spiritual 
sight opened to communicate M'ith the spiritual world. However extraordinary this 
might appear to them, they did not, on that account, treat him with less respect; but 
as ]Mr. Collin observes, " he was universally esteemed for his various erudition, and for 
his probity, benevolence, and general virtue." (See p. 43.) When, however, his 
writmgs began to be seriously read by such men as Drs. Beyer and Rosen, and the truths 
they contain, to make some impression, it was natural to expect that the spirit of oppo- 
sition and persecution would soon manifest itself; and no one expected this oppositiors 
more than Swedenborg himself, who well knew, and who has often declared, that the 
Doctrines of the New Church would meet with the most violent opposition from the 
doctrines of the old church. (See, in particular, his exposition of the xii. chapter of the- 
Revelations.) Swedenborg, on his return to Sweden from London, after he had written 
his letter to Hartley, found that the storm of excitement and persecution was being 
raised against him, which occasioned this appeal to his majesty, the king of Sweden, 
for protection. 



74 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

view, we are astonished at the greamess of his labors, the extent of his know- 
ledge, the purity and consistency of his doctrines, the order and perspicuity of 
his discussions, all which bespeak a mind vastly above the common sort, inde- 
fatigable in its exertions, profound in its researches, illuminated and clear in its 
perceptions, pious, sober, and solid in its principles. 

" With respect to this highly gifted man's visions and communications with 
the spiritual world, in a frequent visible intercourse with angels and other spi- 
rits, they are so well known and attested both in this and other countries, that 
sincere and well-informed minds will no longer doubt of their reality ; nume- 
rous well-known instances might be adduced in confirmation of them : the fol- 
lowing transactions, which may be depended on, will perhaps prove not unac- 
ceptable to many of our readers. 

" The senator, Count H6pken, and the wife of Swedenborg's gardener, have 
confirmed me in the truth of the two following transactions. After the decease 
of M. de Marteville, certain people came to demand a debt of his widow, of a 
considerable sum of money, that they said was due to them by her deceased 
husband ; this she knew was not a just demand, because she was certain it had 
been paid during his life- time, yet could not tell where the acquittance was put. 
In her trouble she applied to Swedenborg, who informed her the next ^ay where 
it was, telling her he had spoken with her deceased husband, who related to 
him where he had put this acquittance, and that she would find it in the particu- 
lar place he described. The acquittance was found in the place Swedenborg 
had named. This account was universaUy known, both at court and in Stock- 
holm, and every one related it according to his information.* 

" Notwithstanding the number of visits that Swedenborg received from people 
of all ranks, he would never receive any particular ones, and more especially 
those of the female sex, without one of his domestics being present; he also 
required that his visitors should speak in the language of the country ; the rea- 
son for which he gave ^vas, I will have, said he, witnesses of my discourse and 
conduct, that all pretences to malicious assertions and scandal may be taken 
away. 

"The following fact is a proof of what I have just observed, and which I have 
from the wife of Swedenborg's gardener. Bishop Hallenius, the successor of 
Swedenborg's father, paying a visit to Swedenborg, the discourse began on the 
nature of common sermons. Swedenborg said to the bishop, among other 
things : ' You insert things that are false in yours ;' on this, the bishop told the 
gardener, who was present, to retire, but Swedenborg commanded him to stay. 
The conversation went on, and both turned over the Hebrew and Greek Bibles, 
to show the texts that were agreeable to their assertions : at length the conver- 
sation finished, by some observations tending as reproaches to the bishop on his 
avarice, and various unjust actions; you have already prepared yourself a place 
in hell, said Swedenborg; but, added he, I predict that you will some months 
hence be attacked with a grievous illness, during which time the Lord will seek 
to convert you. If you do then open your heart to his holy inspirations, your 
conversion will take place. When this happens, write to me for my theological 



* The other m&morable transaction is that concerning the queen of Sweden. See 
above p. 58. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED ^BY MR. ROBSAHM. 75 

works, and I will send them to you. In short, after some months had passed, 
an officer of the provmce and bishoprick of Skara came tu ptiy a visit to Swe- 
denborg. On being asked how the Bishop Hallenlus was ; ' He has been very 
ill,' rephed the officer, ' but at present he is well recovered, and has become al- 
together another person, being now a praotiser of what is good, full of probity, 
and returns sometimes three or four fold of property, for what he had before un- 
justly taken into his possession.' This bishop was from that time, even to the 
hour of his death, one of the greatest supporters of the Doctrine of the New 
Church of the Lord, and declared openly, that the theological writings of Swe- 
denborg were the most precious treasures given for the welfare of mankind. 

" Swedenborg was of a very mild temper, yet just, and incapable of perverting 
truth, for human respects or any other motive. Mr. Robsahm having asked him 
if a certain curate, w^ho was greatly esteemed in the capital on account of his 
flowery sermons, and who was lately deceased, had a place in heaven ? ' No,' 
said Swedenborg, ' he went directly into the abyss ; for this ecclesiastic left his 
devotion in the pulpit : he was not pious, but a hypocrite, proud, and greatly 
vain of the gifts he had received from nature, and the goods of fortune he was 
continually seeking to acquire. Truly, said he, false appearances will stand us 
in no stead hereafter ; they were all separated from him after his decease ; the 
mask has fallen off from him ; and at that period it is manifest to all, whether the 
man is inwardly evil or good. 

" I met him in his carriage, when he was going to London, on his last voyage 
but one, and asked him how he durst undertake so long a voyage at the age of 
eighty ; do you think, added I, that I shall see you return hither ? Be not un- 
easy, my friend, said he, if you live we shall see one another again, for I have 
yet another voyage of this kind to make. He returned accordingly. 

" The last time of his departure from Sweden, he came to see me on the day 
he was to set out, and I then asked him if we should meet again. He answered 
me iu a tender and touching manner : ' I do not know,' said he, ' whether 1 shall 
return ; but am assured, I shall not die before I have finished the publication of 
the book, entitled True Christian Religion, and for which only I am now about 
to depart. But should we not see one another again in this lower world, we 
shall, in the presence of the Lord our heavenly Father, if so be, that we observe 
to do his commandments.' He then took a cheerful leave, and went with an ap- 
parent vigor of body of a man of thirty years of age. 

" Some time before his last voyage, he had petitioned his majesty the king, 
Adolphus Frederick, to expedite letters to the consistories of the kingdom, for 
the examination of his writings, and to enjoin them to give their advice on the 
contents ; but the consistories did not do it. 

" The king having met Swedenborg, said, ' The consistories have been silent 
on my letters and your writings;' and, putting his hand on Swedenborg's shoul- 
der, added, ' we may conclude that they have found nothing reprehensible in 
them, and that you have written in conformity to truth.'" 



A remarkable Anecdote concerning Dr. Beyer and Emanuel Swedenborg. 

" About the year 1766, Swedenborg went to Gottenburg, intending to embark 
for England : when he arrived there, he took his passage in a vessel which was 



76 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

to sail in a few days. During his stay at Gottenburg, Dr. Beyer accidentally met 
with him in company, and entertaining, from report, the same sentiments with 
many others in that country, with respect to his being a madman, on account 
of his assertion, that he had communication with the spiritual world, he was 
surprised when he observed that Swedenborg spoke very sensibly, without dis- 
covering any marks of that infirmity of which he was suspected ; he therefore 
invited Swedenborg to dine with him the day following, in company with Dr. 
Rosen. After dinner, Dr. Beyer expressed a desire, in the presence of Dr. Rosen, 
to hear from himself a full account of his doctrines ; upon which Swedenborg, 
animated by the request, spoke so clearly, and in so wonderful a manner, on 
the subject, that the Dr. and his friend were quite astonished. They gave him no 
interruption; but when the discourse was ended. Dr. Beyer requested Sweden- 
borg to meet him the next day at Mr. Wenngren's and to bring with him a paper, 
containing the substance of his discourse, in order that he might consider it 
more attentively. Swedenborg came the day following, according to his pro- 
mise, and, taking the paper out of his pocket, in the presence of the other two 
gentleman, he trembled, and appeared much affected, the tears flowing down 
his cheeks; when, presenting the paper to Dr. Beyer, ' Sir,' said he, ' from this 
day the Lord has introduced you into the society of angels, and you are now 
surrounded by them.' They were all greatly affected. He then took his leave, 
and the next day embarked for England. 

" The Dr. immediately sent for his writings, and to arrange the subjects more 
distinctly in his mind, began the Index* {Index Initialis in Opera Swedenborgu 
Theologica, ^c), which, as he prepared, he sent, sheet by sheet, to Amsterdam to 
be printed. He was thirteen years in completing that work, and on the day he 
sent off the last sheet corrected, he sickened, took to his bed, and, in a few days, 
it pleased the Lord to call him to himself, to bestow on him the reward of his 
useful labors. t 

" After Dr. Beyer had read the writings of Swedenborg, he became so con- 
vinced of the truths contained therein, that he declared, not only to many in- 
dividuals among the clergy, but likewise in the pubhc consistory, his full assent 
to all the doctrines revealed in those works. This was the cause of the violent 
persecution he endured to the end of his life, which is, in some measure, evident 
from the letters which passed between him and Emanuel Swedenborg."| 



* See above p. 55. 

t This relation was received by one of the editors of the New Jerusalem Magazine, 
published in 1790, from Mr. Wenngren, mentioned above, in the year 1786, who is 
now living at Gottenburg, and is one of the magistrates of that place. 

I These letters will be adduced below. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. PROVO. 77 

XI. 

ANECDOTES OF SWEDENBORG 

WHEN IN LONDON, 

COLLECTED BY MR. PROVO.* 



May 2, 1757, Mr. Provo called on Mr. Bergstron:), who keeps the King's Arms Tavern, 
in Wellclose-square : who, in a conversation of an hour's length, related to him as fol- 
lows : — 

" I was personally acquainted with Assessor Swedenborg : he frequently 
called on me, and once lived ten weeks together with me in this house ; during 
which time I observed nothing in him but what was very reasonable and be- 
spoke the gentleman. He at that time breakfasted on coffee, ate moderately at 
dinner, and drank one or two glasses of wine after it, but never more. In the 
afternoon he drank tea, but never ate any supper. He usually walked out after 
breakfast, generally dressed neatly in velvet, and made a good appearance. He 
was mostly reserved, but complaisant, to others. He has told me that very few 
were given to see the things that he did, and that he often saw many extraor- 
dinary things. Mr. Springer once asked him, when at dinner here, about the 
state of a person who was the occasion of Mr. Springer's being obliged to leave 
Sweden, and who was deceased; to which he answered that it was very bad, 
and that he hoped his would be better. A secretary of Baron Nolken, who was 
present, put an impertment question to him of a similar kind, which he refused 
to answer, observing, that he never answered such questions as originated in 
ill-will or malice. He commonly retired to his chamber in the evening, and 
once I heard some noise from that part, and went to speak to him about it ; and as 
he seemed rejoiced, I asked him the occasion ; when he told me that he had seen 
some extraordinary things w^hich pleased him. He told me the story about the 
qileen of Sweden's [Ulrica's] brother: she had secreily burnt a letter of his to 
her, sent a short time before a battle in which he was killed, and she wanted to 
know some other particulars relative to the contents : Swedenborg, some days 
after her application to him, returned, and told her that her brother was offend- 

* These Anecdotes were inserted in the Intellectual Repository for January, 1836, by 
the Rev. S. Noble, who, in a letter to the Editors of that work, gives the following ac- 
count of them : — 

" Gentlemen, 

" In my ' Appeal in Behalf of the Boctritics of the New Church, ^c.,' I have made 
some use of the following Anecdotes. Except as to the extracts given there, they have 
never been printed. Every authentic testimony, however, respecting the' o-ifted indi- 
vidual to whom they relate, ought, I think, to be put on record in some permanent Re- 
pository : I therefore transmit them for your work. The paper sent was transcribed by 
me from a copy in the handwriting of the late Mr. Servanie, lent by that gentleman to 
me for the purpose. He informed me that his was transcribed from a copy in the pos- 
session of Mr. J. A. Tulk ; who, Mr. Servante understood, had it from Mr. Provo him- 
self. Mr. Peter Provo was a respectable gentleman of the medical profession, who 
published the work called ' Wisdom's Dictates.' — I am. Sec. 

" S. Noble. 
"Dec. 15, 1835." 



78 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

ed that she had burnt his letter ; and as this was known to none bnt herself, she 
nearly fainted at hearing it ; and was always very courteous to him afterwards. 
He also related the affair of the Countess de Marteville, from whose husband's 
informacion, after his decease, he told her ^vhere a receipt for a sum of money 
lay ; where she found it ; for which she wished to make Swedenborg a hand- 
some present, but he refnsed it. Also the story of the fire at Stockholm : and 
that after he had gone out from the company into the garden of the house at 
Gottenburg, he returned, and told the company soon after, that his house and 
garden were safe, and described how near the flame had come to it, though no 
account from thence had then arrived. The remarkably speedy voyage that 
Captain Hodson had when he carried him to Stockholm, he related to me, being 
but seven days on the voyage, and that the captain never once dropped anchor 
all the time, a thing he was greatly surprised at himself, and said that he found 
Swedenborg's company so agreeable, that he was much delighted and taken 
wich him. He once lived in the Minories ; and after that in Cold Bath Fields, 
where I often went to see him; and he told me, some short time before he died, 
that as it had pleased God to take away the use of his arm by a palsy, his body 
w^as now good for nothing but to be put into the ground. I asked him whether 
he would take the sacrament, and whether I should bring Mr. Fernelius, the 
Swedish minister? He said. Do : and we both returned soon after. He told the 
priest to pronounce or read the blessing on it (or the consecration), and leave 
the rest of the form to him, as he knew very well what it meant and was : this 
he did: and after Swedenborg had taken it, he perceived a strong degree of 
heat in his face. He was quite clear in his mind at the time, and said all was 
then properly done, and thanked the clergyman for attending. This was on 
the Friday ; and he died on the Wednesday follov/ing. Mr. Charles Lindegren 
sent his effects to Sweden. 

" Mr. Mathesius was an opponent of Swedenborg, and said that he w^as 
Innatic, &c. ; but it is remarkable that he went lunatic himself, which happened 
publicly one day when he was in the Swedish Church, and about to preach ; I 
was there, and saw it : he has been so ever since, and sent back to Sweden, 
where he now is : this was about four years ago. hi general, Swedenborg kept 
retired, and sought to avoid company, and a knowledge of where he was. 
Some of his friends here spoke against him, and some were for him: for my 
own part, I think he was a reasonable, sensible, and good man : he was very 
kind to all, and generous to me. As for his peculiar sentiments, I do not meddle 
with them. I do not know of any of his manuscripts being left here ; and as 
for his books, I think Mr. Lindegren can best tell what was done with them, 
who is at present in the Royal Exchange Assurance Office. Swedenborg re- 
ceived his remittances from him. He always appeared to have money suffi- 
cient for him. A Mr. Grill, in Dunster-court, Mincing-lane, also knows some- 
thing of him. I do not remember seeing any books in his chamber, and, not 
understanding Latin, I never read any of his works." 

"Mr. Cookworthy related to Mr. Provo,in 1778, that he had been with Mr. 
Hartley to see Swedenborg hi Cold Bath Fields, a few years before he died, and 
that he was near two hours with him, and well satisfied with his company. A 
person was there who objected to some things that Swedenborg said, and 
argued the point in his way ; to which Swedenborg said, * I converse with an- 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. PROVO. 79 

gels, or receive information from them, about such things :' which offended that 
person ; though ]Mr. Cook worthy saw that it was the most forcible argument 
that could have been used ; and as a proof of his approbation of the testimony, 
he afterwards published the first edition of the Treatise on Heaven and Hell, which 
cost £100. 

" In 1781, Mr. Hartley related to Mr. Provo, that he had been with Sweden- 
borg in Cold Bath Fields several times ; that he was a kind and sensible man, 
and had something so loving and taking in his manner as highly delighted 
those he spoke wath : but what his sentiments of him were, may be seen in the 
prefaces to the works on Infiiix, Heaven "and Hell, and Universal Theology ; and 
by his executing the translation of the Heaven and Hell, when near seventy years 
of age, and subject to many bodily infirmities, solely from a desire to render the 
work public for the general good of the world. 

" Mrs. Lewis [an advertisement at the end of the Delitice Sapientice, ^'c. states 
that the works are sold by Mr. Lewis, Paternoster Row, and Mr. Hart (see the 
following article), in Poppin's-court, Fleet-street,] told Mr. Provo, about the year 
1778, that she thought Swedenborg a good and sensible man, but that it appeared 
to her that he was too apt to spiritualize things (when speaking of their corres- 
pondence). She said he was very abstemious, and lived chiefly on almonds 
and raisins. 

"Mr. Hart related to Mr. Provo, about the year 1779, that he thought Swe- 
denborg a remarkable man, for w^hilst he was abroad, old Mr. Hart, his father, 
died in London. On Swedenborg's return he went to spend an evening at Mr. 
Hart's house, in Poppin's-court. After being let in at the street door, he was 
told that his old friend, Mr. Hart, was dead ; to which he replied, ' I know that 
very well, for I saw him in the spiritual world whilst I was in Holland, at such 
a time [near the time he died, or soon after] ; also whilst coming over in the 
packet to England : he is not now in heaven,' continued he, ' but is coming 
round, and in a good w^ay to do well.' This much surprised the widow and 
son, for they knew that he was just come over, and they said that he was of 
such a nature that he could impose on no one, that he always spoke the 
truth concerning every little matter, and would not have rnade any evasion 
though'his life had been at stake. Mr. Hart, the father, printed all the Arcana 
Cadestia, in Latin; Swedenborg was fond of his company, and often went to 
spend an evening there : he used to take particular notice of Mr. Hart's little 
girl, whom Mr. Provo saw at the time, then about ten years old. 

" Mr. Burkhardt, a Swede, and formerly clerk to the Swedish Chapel here, 
told Mr. Provo, in 1783, that he knew Swedenborg, and was present once when 
he dined in London w^ith some of the Swedish clergy ; he said that some argu- 
ment passed between Swedenborg and one of them concerning the Lord, and 
the nature of man's duty of life to him, and that Swedenborg overthrew the 
tenets of his opponent, who appeared but a child to him in knowledge. Mr. 
Burkhardt added, that Swedenborg was a holy, good man, much given to ab- 
straction of mind ; that even when walking out he sometimes seemed as if in 
private prayer, and latterly took but little notice of things and people in the 
streets. After his decease he was carried to this person's house, and buried 
from thence. 



80 DOCUMENTS CONCERNINa SWEDENBORG. 

" In 1785, Mr. Keene went down into the vault of the Swedish Chapel, and 
saw his coffin, which lies next to Dr. Solander's." 



In connexion with these anecdotes of Swedenborg during his residence in London, 
we insert the first public advertisement of his writings which was in 1750: 

"Paternoster-Row, Feb. 5, 1750. 

" Advertisement, by John Lewis, printer and publisher, in Paternoster-Row, 
near Cheapside, London. Be it known unto all the learned and curious, that 
this day is published, the first number of Arcana Calestia, or Heavenly Secrets, 
which are in the Sacred Scriptures, or Word of the Lord, laid open ; as they are 
found in the xvi. chapter of Genesis : together with the wonderful things that 
have been seen in the world of spirits, and in the heaven of angels. 

"This work is intended to be such an exposition of the whole Bible as was 
never attempted in any language before. The author is a learned foreigner, 
who wrote and printed the first volume of the same work but last year, all in 
Latin, which may be seen at my shop in Paternoster-Row, as above-mentioned. 

" And now the second volume is printing, both in Latin and English ; to be 
published in cheap numbers, that the public may have it in an easier manner, 
in either tongue, than in whole volumes. 

" It must be confessed that this nation abounds with a variety of commen- 
taries and expositions on the Holy Bible ; yet when we consider what an inex- 
haustible fund of knowledge the Sacred Scripture contains, the importance of 
the subjects it treats of, and the vast concern every man has in those things they 
relate and recommend, we may cease to wonder that so many ingenious pens 
have been employed in sounding the depths of this vast ocean ; and he must be 
a very dull writer indeed, who does not find a pretty large number of readers of 
any work he may publish of this kind. I would be far from depreciating the 
merit of any man's performance, nay, I will allow, that it is owing to the labors 
of learned and pious men, in their disquisitions after truth in the Bible, that we 
of this kingdom have been enabled to discern truth from error, and to know 
more of the mind and will of God in his Word, than the priests' of Rome were 
willing we should. Yet give me leave to add, that these sacred writings are 
capable of speaking to the heart and understanding of man, by more ways than 
have been thought of, or put into practice ; and he who can discover new 
treasures in these sacred mines, and produce from them such rich jewels as 
were never yet seen by the eye of man, will undoubtedly challenge our strictest 
attention, and deserve encouragement in his pious labors. This, then, may be 
said of our author. He has struck out a new path through this deep abyss, 
which no man ever trod before ; he has left all the commentators and expositors 
to stand on their own footing; he neither meddles nor interferes with any of 
them; his thoughts are all his own; and the ingenious and sublime turn he 
has given to everything in the Scriptures, he has copied from no man; and 
therefore, even in this respect, he has some title to the regard of the ingenious 
and learned world. 

" It is true, when a reader comes to peruse his work, if he expects to under- 
stand him with a slight and cursory reading, he will find himself greatly mis- 



FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS WRITINGS. 81 

taken ; his thoughts are too sublime and lofty to be surveyed with a weak or a 
wanton eye ; his language is quite different from the common modes of speech; 
and his sense is sometimes so deep and profound, as not to be readily appre- 
hended by a common understanding. Whoever, therefore, takes this book in 
hand, and finds passages in it not easily inteUigible, let him not throw it by as a 
thing of no value, nor content himself with a bare perusal; but let him read il; 
over and over again; let him study the drift and design of the author; and I 
will answer for it, that the more and oftener he reads it, the more instruction 
and delight he will receive from it. The author has a depth, which, if once 
fathomed (and it is not unfathomable), will yield the noblest repast to a pious 
mind But if any one imagines that I say this to puff a book, in the sale of 
which my interest is so nearly concerned, any gentleman is welcome to peruse 
it at my shop, and to purchase it or not, as his own judgment shall direct him. 

" Nothing recommends a book more effectually to the public than the emi- 
nence and credit of its author: nothing is more notorious, than that a weak per- 
formance, if it appears under a great name, shall be better received in- the world 
than the most sublime and ingenious productions of an obscure person : so that 
it is not merit but prejudice that generally governs the judgment of men. 

'• Though the author of Arcana CoBlestia is undoubtedly a very learned and great 
man, and his works highly esteemed by the literati, yet he is no less distinguish- 
ed for his modesty than his great talents, so that he will not suffer his name to 
be made public* But though I am positively forbid to discover that, yet I hope 
.he will excuse me if I venture to mention his benign and generous qualities. 
How he bestowed his time and labors in former years, I am not certainly 
informed (though I have heard by those who have been long acquainted 
with him, that they were employed in the same manner as I am going to 
relate) : but what I have been an eye-witness to, I can declare with certain 
truth; and therefore I do aver, that this gentleman, with indefatigable pains 
and labor, spent one whole year in studying and writing the first volume 
of Arcana Ccelestia, was at the expense of two hundred pounds to print it, 
and also advanced two hundred pounds more for the printing of this second 
volume ; and when he had done this, he gave express orders, that all the money 
that should arise in the sale of this large work should be given towards the 
charge of the propagation of the gospel. He is so far from desiring to make a 
gain of his labors, that he will not receive one farthing back of the four hundred 
pounds he has expended ; and for that reason his works will come exceedingly 
cheap to the public. 

" I further declare, I have not the least reason in the world to believe him a 
bigot to any mode or method of religion ; I know not what community he be- 
longs to, or whether he belongs to any : if any one can guess by his writings, 
he knows where to find them. But it matters not what or who the person is 
that writes, if his writings are founded on truth, and agreeable to such learned 
men as are competent judges of them. The deepest and most learned, as well 
as the most valuable pieces, are sometimes misunderstood and rejected for many 

* Swedenborg did not desire to have his own name prominently exhibited in connex- 
ion with the great cause he was the instrument of advocating ; he did not wish to be- 
come the head or leader of a sect ; he addressed his writings to all denominations of 
Christians, and desired his readers to see the truth from fts inherent light, and not be- 
cause it was advocated by some dignified and celebrated name. 
6 



82 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

years, even by learned men themselves ; to instance only three performances out 
of the many that might be produced, viz., Locke on the Human Understanding, 
Milton's Paradise Lost, and Prideaux's Connection of the Old and New Testament. 
Those who have been conversant with books, especially in the trading way, 
cannot be ignorant of the difficulties these valuable pieces have met with in 
making their way into the world : and it is as remarkable now to observe, how 
they have been called for and admired for many years past. 

'•How this great work of Arcana Ccdestia will succeed in the world, is impossi- 
ble at present to determine. If all men of learning were of the same mind with 
the ingenious and pious Mr. Penny, of Dartmouth, we need not fear success ; 
for, in his letter to me, on the publication of the first volume, are these following 
words : ' I have long ardently wished to see the historical part of the Old Testa- 
ment, which seems only to regard the Jewish dispensation (and upon that ac- 
count is too lightly regarded by the major part of the present Christian world), 
proved to be as delightful, instructive, and as necessary for the knowledge of 
Christians as the New. This Arcana Ccdestia gives me fullest satisfaction of,' &c. 
A copy of this letter was printed at large in the Daily Advertiser of Christmas- 
day, 1749. Now this dehghtful, instructive, and necessary knowledge" cannot 
be expected from this part of Holy Writ, unless the historical part of the Old 
Testament be allegorized in some such manner as our Latin author has here 
done it. And the great and learned, as well as the inspired Apostle Paul, clearly 
give encouragement to this way of writing. (Gal. iv. 24 ) And our author nei- 
ther rejects, nor disturbs the literal sense by his allegorical exposition. 

" Soon after the publication of Mr. Penny's letter before-mentioned, a grave, 
judicious, and learned gentleman was pleased to call at one of the bookseller's 
where this famous Latin book was appointed to be sold : and when he had cast 
his eye over part of the work, he inquired who the author was; but being told 
that the author would not be known, ' Well,' said. the gentleman, ' I confess that 
at these years I am not fond of new acquaintance, but should be extremely glad 
to have some conversation with him; for,' continued he, with great earnestness, 
* I never saw, nor heard, nor read of so surprising a man in all my days !' 

" Any one of small judgment may guess at the cheapness of the work, when 
he finds that six hundred and forty quarto pages, in Latin, of the first volume, 
are sold for no more than six shillings unbound. But this second volume, 
which is now publishing in Latin and English, will be unaccountably cheap, as 
any one may conclude, even by the postage of the Latin copy from abroad : for 
the bare postage of this first number cost no less than twelve shillings, and now 
it is printed, does make fifty-two quarto pages in the English tongue; and all to 
be sold for no more than eight-pence, which is not half the price that such 
a quantity of paper and print is generally sold for. The postage of the second 
number came to eighteen shillings ; and that of the third amounted to one pound 
two shillings ; and yet these two numbers are to be sold for no more than nine- 
pence each ; so that from hence it is easy to imagine how cheap the whole will 
be, especially when printed in such a grand and pompous manner at so low a 
price. But it is the generous author's absolute command that it should be so, 
who, it is plain, wants neither purse nor spirit to carry on his laudable under- 
taking. 
" As the copy comes from a foreign country, and as one number may contain 



FIRST RECEPTION OF HIS WRITINGS. 83 

nearly double the quantity of another, it is utterly impossible to fix a certain 
regular time for the publication of each. But this the public may be assured of 
that when a fresh number is published, it shall be advertised in the newspapers. 
Those who are pleased to give their orders to the news-carriers, will have every 
number as certainly as though they were apprised of the certain time of its com- 
ing out. And the price will be printed on the title of each English number (and 
every Latin number, will be of the same price with the English), so that the 
readers may be sure that they will not be imposed upon ; for sometimes the 
bulk of the book will plainly appear to be worth five times as much as will be 
required for it. 

" Those who are so happy as to be well acquainted with the Latin tongue, 
will be highly delighted with the author's elegant and sublime language." 



First Reception of the Writings of Swedenborg* 

The first volume of the Arcana CcelesUa, containing the explanation of the first fifteen 
chapters of Genesis, was published in London, in the Latin language, in the year 1749, 
and was the earliest of Swedenborg's theological works. Our readers will not be dis- 
pleased to see the following letter,t from, probably, the first person who embraced the 
truths it contains, expressing the satisfaction he derived from it. Though not a docu- 
ment of any decided importance, it is interesting as a curiosity, and as evincing that the 
truths of the New Church found some receivers on their very first publication. This 
letter was sent to the Daily Advertiser^ formerly a popular newspaper, of Christmas- 
day, 1749, by the publisher of the work, and is introduced by his business-like note, to 
the Editor, as follows : — 

*' Sir, 

" If you will insert the following letter in your paper, it may induce the curious 
in the learned world, to peruse a work very entertaining and pleasant, and oblige, 

" Sir, yours, &c. 

"John Lewis. 

" ' To Mr. John Lewis, in Paternoster-Row, Cheapside, London. 

" ' Dartmouth, October 15, 1749. 
** ' Mr. John Lewis, 

" ' Sir, — Accidentally reading the advertisement of the Arcana Cadestia, excited 
by the oddness of the title, I presently ordered my friend in London to send me 
one. The extraordinary degree of pleasure the reading of it has given me, and 
the yet more expected from what more is to be published, induces me to request 
advice as often as any new publication happens, which I apprehend to be de- 
signed annually. My reason for troubling you, is, because I very rarely see any 
of the public papers, and, consequently, future advertisements may escape my 
knowledge ; which, I hope will excuse me. 

" ' I have long ardently wished to see the historical part of the Old Testament, 
which seems only to regard the Jewish dispensation (and upon that account is 
too lightly regarded by the major part of the present Christian world), proved to 
be as delightful, instructive, and as necessary for the knowledge of Christians as 
the New. This the Arcana Codestia gives me the fullest satisfaction of. But the 

* See Intellectual Repoiitory for 1826, p. 179. f Mentioned above p. 82. 



84 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

illumined author, whoever he is, ( is it Mr. Law ?) must expect a considerable 

army of gown- men to draw their pens against him : it is a blessing their power 

is prescribed within impassable bounds. 

" ' The favor of a line ia answer, to know what dependance I may make upon 

you, will very much oblige, Sir, your most humble servant, 

" • Stephen Penny. 

" 'P.S. Perhaps the author was concerned in the publication of Mr. Hutchin- 
son's works ? Has he published any other work, and at what price ?' " 

To this the bookseller appends the following notice : 

"This large Latin book is neatly printed in 4to. ; and sold by Mr. Nourse, at 
the Lamb, opposite Katharine-street, in the Strand ; Mr. Ware, at the Bible on 
Ludgate-hill ; and by John Lewis, printer of the same, as above-mentioned : 
price 6s. unbound." 



Connected with those who knew something of Swedenborg personally, was the late 
Mr. Servante, who was the principal editor of the New Jerusalem Magazine^ published 
in 1790. This testimony is chiefly valuable on account of the portrait of Swedenborg 
in advanced age, engraved by Martin, the fidelity of which is singularly proved. As 
Mr. Servante was one of the earliest promoters of the doctrines of the New Church, 
we shall adduce the brief memoir concerning him, which, soon after his death, was 
inserted in the Intellectual Repository for 1817, p. 514: — 

" On the 23d August, 1817, in his 76th year, died Mr. Henry Servante. As a 
member of the New Church, he was, in London, one of the earliest promoters 
of its doctrines, having been, many years since, engaged in the publication of 
the New Jerusalem Magazine, a work which contains much interesting and useful 
information. As a true Christian, he endured with patient and pious resigna- 
tion his share of those trials and sufferings which are experienced to be so high- 
ly conducive to the regenerate life. Beloved and respected as he was by his 
relatives and friends, to whom his exemplary mildness and humility had endear- 
ed him, they cannot fail to blend the tear of tender regret, with their sincere con- 
gratulations on his advancing state. He was' amiable in his life, and expired 
with little or no previous illness, as in the sweetness of sleep, without a struggle 
or a sigh. 

" Mr. Servante was descended from a respectable family in the south of France, 
a branch of which fled to this country, on the revocation of the edict of Nantz, 
to preserve the freedom of their religious sentiments. He had himself been 
from his youth a sincere seeker after religious truth, and had undergone severe 
anxieties in consequence of not being able to obtain the satisfaction which he 
wanted : but at length meeting, by apparent accident, with one of those parts of 
the second volume of the Arcana, which were published in English at the same 
time as the Latin original, his former doubts were instantly removed, and the 
light of truth shone at once into his mind, bringing with it a clearness of con- 
viction which was never afterwards obscured, but was more and more illustrated 
to the day of his decease. The reader may also feel an interest in being inform- 
ed, that he was one of the last remaining individuals who remembered the per- 
son of Swedenborg, though at the time he saw him he did not know him. He 



DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 85 

was once passing along St. John's-street, London, in the neigborhood of which^ 
Swedenborg lodged, when he met an old gentleman of a dignified and most vene- 
rable appearance, whose deeply thoughtful yet mildly expressive countenance, 
added to something very unusual in his general air, attracted his attention very 
forcibly: he turned round, therefore, to take another view of the stranger, who 
also turned round and looked again at him. Some years afterwards, when Mr. 
Servante had received the truth in the manner above stated, he called on Mr, 
Hindmarsh for some of the writings; when seeing in that gentleman's parlor a 
portrait of the author, he instantly recognized in it the venerable stranger whose 
appearance had so much interested him. The portrait which he saw was 
copied from the print engraved by Martin, representing Swedenborg in advanced 
age, the fidelity of which is thus singularly proved." 



XII. 

REFUTATION OF THE FALSE REPORT 

THAT SWEDENBORG, 

A FEW HOURS BEFORE HIS DEATH, 

HAD RETRACTED HIS WRITINGS. 



This report was first propagated in. Holland; it was not heard of till several years 
after Swedenborg's death. As the receivers of Swedenborg's writings in Holland were 
greatly concerned to hear this report, especially as it was said to have emanated from 
the persons at whose house Swedenborg lodged and died, and they wrote to Mr. Robert 
Hindmarsh, in London, requesting liim immediately to inquire of the persons in ques- 
tion, who were still living, and to ascertain whether the report were true ^ false. The 
following is Mr. Hindmarsh's letter, in reply to the inquiry from Holland, together with 
the affidavit, taken before the Lord Mayor of London, by Mr. and Mrs. Shearsmith, at 
whose house Swedenborg died : 

*' Sir, 

** I am in possession of the most authentic proof of the falsity of the report 
you mentioned to have gained credit in Holland, regarding Baron Swedenborg's 
having disowned, or retracted, his doctrines and communications when he was 
drawing near his end. The persons in whose house he lived, and where he 
died, upon being told this circumstance, freely offered, of their own accord, to 
take their oaths before a magistrate, that the whole of the said report is totally 
void of foundation, to the best of their knowledge . You will see this accordingly 
confirmed by the enclosed document, sworn to in the presence of the Lord Mayor 
of this city, and of which you are at full liberty to make whatever use you may 
think proper, in order to destroy the influence of so malevolent an insinuation. 
Allow me to add here, what I have further learnt from Mr. Springer, a Swedish 
gentleman residing here, and a very intimate friend, as you may have heard, of 
Swedenborg's : — ' When the deceased found his end approaching, and expressed 
a wish to have the communion administered to him, somebody present at the 



86 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

\ ' 

time proposed sending for Mr. Mathesius, the officiating minister of the Swedish 

church. This person \wii.s known to be a professed enemy of Swedenborg, and 

had set his face against his writings : it was he that raised and spread the false 

account of Swedenborg's having been deprived of his senses. Swedenborg 

therefore declined taking the sacrament from him, and actually received it from 

the hands of another ecclesiastic of his own country, named Fernelius, who at 

that time was a reader of Swedenborg's writings, and is said to have continued 

to do so ever since, at Stockholm, where he is now living; and I have been 

assured that, on this occasion, Swedenborg expressly exhorted him to continue 

steadfast in the truth.' 

" Mr. Mathesius is said to have become insane himself, a short time after this ; 
and becoming thereby incapable of his function, has existed ever since, in that 
melancholy state, upon the king of Sweden's bounty. 

" Mr. Springer further says, ' That a short time before his death, Swedenborg 
had his spiritual or internal sight withdrawn from him, after having been favored 
with it during so long a course of years : that he was under the greatest tribula- 
tion of mind on that account, calling out, *' my God ! hast thou then at last 
abandoned thy servant ?" This seems to have been the last of Swedenborg's trials. 
He continued several days in that deplorable condition ; but at length recovered 
his spiritual or internal sight. He was then comforted again, and became happy 
as before.' 

" Mr. Springer received this assurance from Swedenborg's own mouth ; and 
all I write now is from an exact copy of part of a letter written by Mr. Springer 
himself. — I remain, &c., 

"Robert HiNDMARSH. 
*« London, Nov. 28, 1786." 

Affidavit referred to in the above Letter. 

"Richard Shearsmith, of Coldbath Fields, London, peruke-maker, and Eliza- 
beth Shearsmith, formerly Reynolds, his present wife, jointly and severally make 
oath, and say. That the late Honorable Emanuel Swedenborg came to lodge a 
second time at his, this deponent's, house, No. 26 Coldbath Fields, aforesaid, in 
the month of July or August, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-one, and 
continued to lodge there until his death, which happened the twenty-ninth of 
March following. That a short time before Christmas, one thousand seven 
hundred and seventy-one, he had a paralytic stroke, which deprived him of his 
speech, and occasioned his lying in a lethargic state for three weeks and up- 
wards, during the whole of which time he took no sustenance whatever, except 
a little tea without milk, and cold water occasionally ; and once, about two tea- 
spoonsful of red currant jelly. That about the expiration of three weeks from 
the time he was so struck, he recovered his speech and health a little, and eat 
and drank toast, tea, and coffee, as usual. That from that time to the time of 
his death he was visited but by a very few friends only, and always seemed un- 
willing to see company. That about a month before he died, he told this de- 
ponent, then Elizabeth Reynolds, spinster, who was then a servant to her fellow- 
deponent and Mrs. Shearsmith her then mistress, that he should die on a par- 
ticular day, which to the best of her recollection and belief, happened on the 
day he had foretold. That about a fortnight or three weeks before he died, he re- 



CONFIRMATION OF SHEARSMITH'S TESTIMONY. 87 

ceived the sacrament in bed from the hands of a foreign clergyman, and enjoyed 
a sound mind, memory, and understanding to the last hour of his life. That 
about five o'clock on Sunday the twenty-ninth day of March, he asked her, 
this deponent, and her then mistress, who were sitting by his bed-side, what 
o'clock it was; and upon their answering him that it was about five o'clock, he 
replied, * That is good, I thank you, God bless you,' or to that effect; and in 
about ten minutes after, he heaved a gentle sigh, and expired in the most tranquil 
manner. And these deponents jointly and severally on their oath declare, that, 
to the best of their recollection and belief, no person whatever visited him, either 
the day before, or the day on which he died. And these deponents positively 
declare that they never did, either directly or indirectly, say or assert to any 
person or persons whatsoever, that the said Emanuel Swedenborg had, a few 
hours before his death, retracted or contradicted any part of his writings, as lias 
been falsely reported ; nor did they ever hear him, nor do they believe he ever 
did, say a word that expressed or implied such an idea; nor were ihese depo- 
nents ever asked a question relative to that circumstance, by any person or per- 
sons whatsoever, until the twenty-second day of October last, when Mr. Thomas 
Wright, of the Poultry, London, watchmaker, and Mr. Robert Hindmarsh, of 
I Clerkenwell-close, printer, called upon them to inquire into the truth or false- 
' hood of such report, which these deponents then declared to them, and now 
again on their oaths declare, to be a false and groundless report. * 

"Richard Shearsmith, 
" Sworn at the Guildhall, London, the 24th day " Elizabeth Shearsmith. 

of November, 1785, before me, 
\ " T. Wright, Mayor." 

The above affidavit was translated into French, and printed at the Hagiie; by which 
means the false report that had gained credit there was completely refuted, and the 
enemies of truth were effectually silenced. 



The above testimony confirmed by Mr. B. Chastanier. 

*« As a strong confirmation of the above testimony, I, Benedict Chastanier, 
surgeon. No. 62 Tottenham-court-road, am happy in being able to declare, that 
the late Rev. Mr. Hartley* declared to me, on the very first visit he paid me in 
1778, at my house, then in Grafton- street, Soho, that three or four days before 
Swedenborg's death, he, together with Dr. Messiter,t waited on him, and in the 
Doctor's presence, earnestly pressed him openly to declare, whether all he had 
written was strictly true, or whether any part, or parts thereof were to be ex- 
cepted. ' I have written,' answered Swedenborg, in a very emphatic manner, 
* nothing but the truths as you will have it more and more confirmed hereof ter all the days 
of your life, provided you always keep close to the Lord, and faithfully serve Him alone, 
in shunning evils of all kinds as sins against Him, and diligently searching His Holy 
Word, which from beginning to end bears incontestible testimony to the truth of the doc- 
trines I have delivered to the world' — Dr. Messiter, lately deceased, has also more 



* See above p. 37. t See above p. 44. 



88 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

than once affirmed to me this plain declaration of his intimate friend, Mr. Hart- 
ley. As witness my hand this 9th of May, 1790 : 

" Benedict Chastanier."* 



XIII. 

ANECDOTES OF SWEDENBORG 

WHILE 

IN HOLLAND. 



Swedenborg was well known at Amsterdam, having published many of his works In 
that city. A gentleman, named D. Paulus ab Indagine,t has left several things on re- 
cord concerning Swedenborg, which, although not of much importance, and, in some 
respects, evidently erroneous, we shall here adduce. The following is an extract from 
a letter which D. P. ab Indagine addressed to Swedenborg, dated March 8, 1769 ; — 

*' Vir doctissime, celeberrimeque ! [Most learned and celebrated Man.] 

•* have thoroughly examined the principles of your system. You rest your 
principal proofs on what you maintain you have seen.| You relate wonderful 
things, which you assert you have heard and seen. Hitherto you have published 
works On the Last Judgment and the Destruction of Babylon ; On Heaven and Hell / 
On the White Horse ; On the Earths in the Universe ; On the Wisdom of Angels, &c. 
The Arcana Ccdestia, your most extensive work, consisting of eight parts, I have 
not yet been able to meet with, and, of course, have not read.§ More writings 
of this kind have appeared. You have sent, I am informed, a copy to all the 
bishops of England ; but not one has given himself the trouble to confute them. 
The Dutch have criticised one of your last works, entitled Conjugial Love, &c., with 
much care, and with a praiseworthy modesty. The critic at Amsterdam with- 
holds his judgment and his final decision, until he has seen the complete work, 
which, you promise, shall appear within two years. ' We expect, therefore,' 
says the reviewer, ' a greater development, and a fuller illustration, which, we 
doubt not, will appear in due time. In the mean time,' says he, at the conclu- 
sion of his remarks, ' the divines, in our opinion, can spare themselves the 
trouble of refuting the ideas of this extraordinary man.' 

*' Your last work you have distributed amongst the divines of all sects in this 
city, not only amongst the Reformed, but also amongst the Roman Catholics; 
you have also advertised it in other cities, and in the other universities of Hol- 
land. Far be it from me to place limits to the divine omnipotence ; I lay for the 

* See New Jerusalem Magazine, 1790, p. 226. 

f This individual is described in collateral documents, as being a highly respectable 
and learned man, resident at Amsterdam. 

± This is by no means the case ; all the proofs of his doctrines are based upon the 
Word of God, and enlightened reason. 

§ This does not comport with what he says in the first sentence, *' I have thoroughly," 
&c., since the principles of his system are chiefly developed in this his most extensive 
work. 



ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY D. P. AB INDAGINE. 89 

j^resent, my metaphysics and my psychology aside, in order that I may not do 
injustice to a venerable man of eighty-six* years and upwards, who is a learned 
man, and of an excellent ajid upright character^ and I would by no means de- 
tract anything from his merits. I will, therefore, admit, that it has pleased the 
Lord to manifest himself to you, and to send you to teach something new, which 
tlie church and the whole human race have hitherto not known ; yea, I will 
admit, that you are permitted to be in the spidtual world with angels, and, at 
the same time, to dwell in this world with men, and this already for twenty-five 
years ; but, my dear friend, why do you not convince the unbelieving world of 
this your peculiar calling? 

" It is repoi-ted, that you have related, word for word, from the world of spir- 
its, the conversation which the queen of Sweden formerly held in this world 
with her brother, the king and prince of Prussia, at Charlotienburg, near Berlin 5 
and that the queen, who well knew that no one was present at this.secret con- 
versation, and that, consequently, not a word of it could be repeated by any 
person living, was compelled to admit, that you had ascertained the most particu- 
lar circumstances of this conversation, and must certainly have had an inter- 
view with her deceased brother. It is well known that men, in general, are 
very attentive to wonderful things, and very desirous of knowing them. Various 
friends have told me of this occurrence, and many, whom I have heard relate it, 
have added to it something of their own ; but that this remarkable occurMice 
did happen, you yourself have told me ; and why do you not make it publicly 
known to the unbelieving world ? Truth seems to require this of you ; you have 
the queen, and the king, as well, for witnesses ; and they, no doubt, will not 
refuse to give their testimony. "t 

The Sivedhh Documents, p. 104^ give extra>cls from letters written by this respectabid 
man at Amsterdam, wi'^o was acquainted with Swedenborg, and contain certain things 
which he communicates to an intimate friend at Hamburg.. In his first letter, dated 
Jan. 26, l??!, he says, amongst other things-— 

" You ask me what this venerable old man (Swedenborg) is now doing ? This 
I can tell you ; he eats and drinks very moderately, but keeps his chamber rather 
long, and thirteen hours appear to be not too much for him.i When I informed 
him, that his work On the Earths in the Universe had been translated and pub- 
lished, he was much delighted, and his eyes w^hich are always smiling, became 
still more brilliant. He is now indefatigably at work ; yea, I must say, that he 

* This is a mistake, since Swedenborg was only eighty-four when he died, 
t Such testimonies have been given ; and the queen lierself testified several times to 
the truth of this occurrence. But Sv/edenborg's doctrine, which contains the develop- 
ment of spiritual truths, could not be demonstrated by miraculous phenomena; nor 
does it stand in need of stupefying miracles, which, for the time their influence contin- 
ues, deprives a man of the use of his freedom and rationality. It rests upon interior 
grounds — upon Scripture and reason ; and the miraculous experience which Sweden- 
borg and others may hare had, only serves as a confirmation. Those extraordinary oc- 
currences could, indeed, demonstrate that he was in a condition to experience things in 
the other worid ; but, as they could by no means prove his doctrine, he consequently re- 
fused to record them, and to appeal to them as proofs of his doctrine: and this he no 
doubt told D. P. ab Indagine ; for We find, that he afterwards conversed much with 
him when at Amsterdam, — Tafel. 

t It must be observed, that his time was not all consumed in sleep, but a great por- 
tion of it in meditation and spiritual intercourse, when he would, of course, pirefer being 
secluded from the world.— Ta/e^, 
7 



90 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEBENBORG. 

labors in a most astonishing and superhuman manner at his new work. Only 
think ! for every printed sheet (4to.) he has to prepare four sheets x>i manuscript ; 
he now prints two sheets every week, and corrects them himself, and conse- 
quently he has to write eight sheets -every week ; and what appears to me utterly 
inconceivable, he has not a single line beforehand in store.* His work is to 
consist, as he himself states, of about eighty sheets in print; and he has calcu- 
lated that it will not be finished before Michaelmas. The title of this work is 
the following ; ' True Christian Religion, containing the Universal Theology of the 
New Church, predicted by the Lord in Daniel, chap. viii. 1, 3, 14, and in the Apocalypse, 
chap. xxii. 1, 2, by Emanuel Swedenborg, servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.' I 
could not, in ray open manner, conceal my astonishment, that he should put 
himself upon the title-page as a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. But he re- 
plied, * I have asked, and have not only received permission, but have been 
ordered to do so.' It is astonishing with what confidence the old gentleman 
speaks of the spiritual world, of the angels, and of God himself. If I were only 
to give you the substance of our last conversation, I should fill many pages. 
He spoke of naturalists (those who ascribe all things to nature), whom he had 
seen shortly after their death, and"^ amongst whom were even many theologians, 
or such, at least, as had made theology their profession in this life. He told me 
things which made me shudder, but which, however, I pass by, in order not to 
be of er hasty iri my judgment respecting him. 1 will willingly admit, that I 
know not what to make of him ; he is a problem that I cannot solve. I sincerely 
wish, that upright men, whom God has placed as watchmen upon the walls of 
Zion, had some time since occupied themselves with this man." 

The Swedish Documents mention also another letter^ written by the same person, 
addressed to a respectable merchant at Hamburg, dated March 5, 1771 ; in which he 
says, amongst other things-- 

" I cannot forbear to tell you something new about Swedenborg. Last Thurs- 
day, I paid him a visit, and found him, as usual, writing. He told me, ' that he 
had been in conversation that same morning, for three hours, with the deceased 
king of Sweden. He had seen him already on the Wednesday ; but, as he ob- 
served that he was deeply engaged in conversation with the queen, who is still 
living, he would not disturb him.' 1 allowed Ifim to continue, but, at length, 
asked him, how it was possible for a person, who is still in the land of the liv- 
ing, to be met with in the world of spirits ? He replied, ' that it was not the 
queen herself, but her spiritus familiaris, or her familiar spirit.' Tasked him what 
that might be ? for I had neither heard from hirn anything respecting appear- 
ances of that kind, nor had I read anything about them. He then informed me- 
Uhat every man has either his good or bad spirit, who is not only constantly 
with him,t but sometimes a little removed from him, and appears in the world 

* This is a mistake ; for Swedeiiborg had contemplated his last work several years 
before he printed it. He first published, in 17G9, the Summaria Expositio Doctrince 
NovcE Ecclesid, fyc, as a forerunner to the work in question. lie had written it at home, 
and brought it to Amsterdam to be published, after having been at Paris for that pur- 
pose. (See below p. 91.) He, no doubt, revised the MS. as he sent it, sheet by sheet, 
to the press, and probably made additions and alterations, and this inight lead Ab Inda- 
gine to suppose that he composed it immediately before it was sent to press. 

•j- " Every man has his associate spirit; and every man attracts to himself a spirit 
similar to the aflection of his will, and h-ence to the perception of his understanding." 
— T. C. R. 380 ; see also A, C. 5470. 



ANECDOTE RESPECTJNG HIS VISIT TO PARIS. 91 

of spirits. But of this the man still liviug knows nothing; the spirit, however, 
knows everything. This familiar spirit has everything in accordance with his 
companion upon earth ; he has, in the world of spirits, the same figure, the same 
countenance, and tlie same tone of voice, and wears also similar garments; in 
a word,this/<2w///ar spirit of the queen,' said Swedenborg, ' appeared exactly as 
he had so often seen the queen herself at Stockholm, and had heard her speak.' 
In order to allay my astonishment, he added, ' that Dr. Ernesti,* of Leipzig, had 
appeared to him, in a similar manner, in the world of spirits, and that he had 
held a long disputation with him.' What will this learned professor say, when 
he comes to hear of it ? Probably he will say, that the old man is in his second 
childhood ; he will only laugh at it, and who can be surprised ? I have often 
wondered at myself, how I could refrain from laughing, when I was hearing such 
extraordinary things from him. And what is more, I have often heard him re- 
late the same things in a numerous company of ladies aild gentlemen, when I 
well knew that there were mockers amongst them ; but, to my great astonish- 
ment, not a single person even thought of laughing. Whilst he is speaking, it is 
as though every person who hears him were charmed, and compelled to be- 
heve him. He is by no means reserved and recluse, but open-hearted, and ac- 
cessible tb aU. Whoever invites him as his guest, may expect to see him. A 
certain young gentleman invited him last week to be his guest, and althoi^h he 
was not acquainted with him, he appeared at his table, where he met Jewish 
and Portuguese gentlemen, with whom he freely conversed, without distinction. 
Whoever is curious to see him has no difficulty ; it is only necessary to go to his 
house, and he allows anybody to approach him. It can easily be conceived, 
however, that the numerous visits, to which he is liable, deprive him of much 
time. — I am, &c,, 

" D. P. ab Indagine." 



With respect to the work above mentioned, entitled " Universal Theology of the True 
Christian Religion, §*c.," which was the last that Swedenborg himself superintended 
through the press, it may be proper here to observe, that it was Swedenborg's intention 
to have this work printed and ijublished at Paris, whither he went, in 1769, for that 
purpose. When he arrived, it was necessary, according to the laws which then regu- 
lated the press in France, to submit the work first to the censor royal to recei\e permis- 
sion to print it ; as, however, permission could not be given without saying in the title- 
page, that it v/as printed either at Amsterdam or London, Swedenborg being in all things 
most scrupulous as to the truth, peremptorily refused to concur in this falsehood, and 
accordingly went to Amsterdam, where the work was printed. 

The following authentic anecdote, which proves that this was the fact, is extracted 
from the advertisement prefixed to the French edition of the first volume of the True 
Christian Religion, printed at Paris in 1S02 : — 

" Swedenborg came to Paris in 1769. He wished to have his True Christian 
Religion printed there ; but it was necessary that the work should be submitted 
to the censors. M. Chevreuil, then censor royal and doctor of the Sorbonne, 
who was appointed to examine it, told him, after having read it, that a tacit 
permission would be granted him, on condition, as was customary in such cases. 



* See T. C. R, 137, where Swedenborg alludes to this circumstance. 



92 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

that the title should say, printed at London, or at Amsterdam. But Swedenborg, 
with a rare delicacy, perfectly suited to his principles, would not consent to it; 
and the work, therefore, was not printed at Paris.* This anecdote, which has 
not hitherto been known, was attested to one of the editors by M. Chevreuil 
himself. Our author speaks of this journey in a letter to Dr. Beyer, dated Am- 
sterdam, March 15, 1769, in which he says, that he shall set off for Paris in a 
month. t And in another letter to the same, from Stockholm, of October 30th in 
the same year, he says that he has learnt that a letter has been printed at Gotten- 
burg, in which it is pretended that he had received an order at Paris to quit that 
city ; but, adds he, that is a pure falsehood, as M. Creutz, the Swedish ambas- 
sador in France, can testify." 



We have now adducfed all the documents^ we can find respecting the life of Sweden- 
borg as it was known and observed by persons distinguished for their intelligence, piety, 
and respectability, both in Sweden, Denmark, Holland, and England. In the testimony 
to Swedenborg's virtues and attainments, thus borne by so many most unexceptionable 
witnesses who knew him well, and against which no opposing testimony whatever, 
from persons acquainted with him, can be adduced, we surely have the most satisfac- 
tory confirmation, not only of his own account of his life and character, but of all that 
is advanced, as to his qualifications for the office to which he declares he was appoint- 
ed, namely, that of unfolding the spiritual sense of the Holy Word, and of explaining 
the genuine doctrines of the Christian Religion, and as to the antecedent probability, 
that he might be the human instrument selected to communicate the truths connected 
with the Second Advent of the Lord, on the supposition that the time for that event has 
arrived. We also see that many men of the very first respectability, intelligence, and 
learning, who formed their opinion from a knowledge of the man as well as of his writ- 
ings, believed, during his lile-time, that he actually was such an instrument. h 

But it may perhaps be thought, that if, in consequence of having been called by th©} 
Lord to a holy office, he really bad the privilege of conversing with angels and spirits, 
some plain proofs of it, beyond his own assertions, might occasionally occur. Now that 
such proofs did occur, is a certain fact. He, indeed, never appeals to them in support 
of his mission : he shows, in various parts of his writings, that where the mind is not re- 
ceptive of truth by its own evidence, no external testiuiony will force it in : he therefore 
affirms, what we shall presently advert to, that it would have been incompatible with 
the nature of the truly spiritual dispensation io be opened by the second coming of the 
Lord to prove it by miracles. To the performance of miracles, therefore, he made no 

* In respect to Swedenborg's intention of having this work published at Paris, the 
English editor of these " Documents" begs here to record a fact which has appeared to 
him rather extraordinary, since it indicates that the original design of Swedenborg, 
namely, that of having the work published at Paris, was, to a certain extent, carried out. 
The editor, when at Paris in the autumn of 1S2G, went one day into a respectable old 
book shop ; the proprietor, nearly eighty years of age, on being asked if he had any of 
the theological works of Swedenborg, replied, that he had a few copies of the '■'True 
Christian Religion," and one or two of " Heaven and Hell." The editor having purchased s 
copy of each of these works, the old gentleman observed, that about fii'iy years ago, he 
had met with the " True Christian Religion," and thinking it to be a very curious book, 
he wrote to Amsterdam, requesting hi^ agent to buy up all the copies of the said work 
he could find, and to send them to Paris, so that this work, alihoui^h printed at Amster- 
dam, was, according to Swedenborg's original intention, chiefly issued from Paris. 

t See Neiv Jerusalem Magazine, p. 142. These letters will be adduced below. 

t Except one respecting his having a fever, and being delirious, &c., propagated by 
Wesley in his Armenian Magazine, the refutation of which will be adduced in its proper 
place below. See above p. 3G note. 



TESTIMONY OF THE QUEEN OF SWEDEN. 93 

claim: yet as Providence permitted him, on some occasions, to give full demonstration 
of his supernatural knowledge, we must conclude that it was granted for some useful 
end. That end may be, to aflord satisfaction to those, who, though favorably inclined 
towards the doctrines of the New Church in general, would yet feel more assured by 
some external tokens. On those who are decidedly opposed to the truths contained in 
our author's writings, no external tokens whatever, we are quite certain, would induce 
reception : but to others, those which follow may be useful as confirmations : in which 
light, only, they are offered. 

Two of the most extraordinary instances of Swedenborg's access to the spiritual world, 
are those respecting the Countess de Marteville, whose husband was ambassador at the 
Swedish court from Holland, and the queen of Sweden, Louisa Ulrica, wife of king 
Adolphus Frederick, and sister of the celebrated Frederick of Prussia. Many editions 
of these anecdotes in diiferent works, resting on the authority of different relaters, have 
appeared ; but all agreeing in substance. Both of them are given by M. Pernetti, in 
the preface to his French translation of the Treatise on Heaven and Hell, upon the au- 
thority of Count Hopken. Both are mentioned, also, by Mr. Springer ; and that re- 
lating to the queen is given in the letter of General Tuxen's cited above ; who states, 
that, having heard of it from various jjersons, he inquired the exact particulars from 
Swedenborg himself. But we will give it in the queen's own words, as recorded, 
together with the anecdote of the Countess de Marteville, by an author who cannot be 
suspected of any partiality in favor of Swedenborg ; we mean M. Dieudonne Thiebault, 
a French savant of the school of Voltaire, and Professor of Belles Lettres in the Royal 
Academy of Berlin. He was the author of a work translated into English, and printed 
at London in 1805, under the title of" Original Anecdotes of Frederick the Great, King 
cf Prussia." He represents queen Louisa Ulrica as being, like her brother, a professed 
esprit fort, carrying it even to the avowal of atheism ; which we mention as necessary 
to account for the contradictory remarks with which she concludes her narration ; and 
because it* makes her a more unexceptionable witness to the fact she relates. It oc- 
curred in 1758. 



PART II. 

TESTIMOxNIES TO SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD. 



XIV. 

THE QUEEN OF SWEDEN'S TESTIMONY 

CONCERNING SWEDENBORG'S 

INTERCOURSE WITH THE SPIRITUAL WORLD. 



" I know not on what occasion it was," says M. Thiebault, " that, conversing 
one day with the queen on the subject of the celebrated visionary, Swedenborg, 
we (the members of the academy,) expressed a desire, particularly MyMerian 
and myself, to know what opinion was entertained of him in Sweden. I, on my 
part, related what had been told me respecting him by Chamberlain d'Hamon 



94 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

who was still alive, and who had been ambassador from Prussia both to Holland 
and France. It was, ' That his brother-in-law (the Count de Marteville), ambas- 
sador from Holland to Stockholm, having died suddenly, a shopkeeper demand- 
ed of his widow the payment of a bill for some articles of drapery, which she 
remembered had been paid in her husband's life-time: th^* the widow, not 
being able to find the shopkeeper's receipt, had been advised to consult with 
Swedenborg, who, she was told, could converse with the dead whenever he 
pleased ; that she accordingly adopted this advice, though she did ao less from 
credulity than curiosity; and at the end of a few days Swedenborg informed 
her, that her deceased husband had taken the shopkeeper's receipt for the money 
on such a day, at such an hour, as he was reading such an article in Bayle's 
Dictionary in his cabinet ; and that his attention being called immediately after- 
wards to some other concern, he put the receipt into the book to mark the place 
at which he left off; wherein fact it was found, at the page described.' The 
queen replied, that though she was but little disposed to believe in such seem- 
ing miracles, she nevertheless had been wiUing to put the power of Sweden- 
borg, with whom she was acquainted, to the proof: that she was previously ac- 
quainted with the anecdote I had related, and it was one of those that mostly* 
had excited her astonishment, though she had never taken the pains to ascer- 
tain the truth of it; but that Swedenborg having come one evening to her court, 
she had taken him aside, and begged him to inform himself of her deceased 
brother, the Prince Royal of Prussia, what he said to her at the moment of her 
taking leave of him for the court of Stockholm. She added, that what she had 
said was of a nature to render it impossible that the prince could have repeated 
it to any one, nor had it ever escaped her own lips : that, some days after, Swe- 
denborg returned, when she was seated at cards, and requested she would grant 
him a private audience ; to which she replied, he might communicate what he 
had to say before the company ; but Swedenborg assured her he could not dis- 
close his errand in the presence of witnesses : that in consequence of this intima- 
tion the queen became agitated, gave her cards to another lady, and requested 
M. de Schwerin (who also was present whe;i she related the story to us,) to 
accompany her : that they accordingly went together into another apartment, 
where she posted M. de Schwerin at the door, and advanced towards the farthest 
extremity of it with Swedenborg; who said to her, * You took, madam, your 
last leave of the Prince of Prussia, your late august brother, at Charlottenburgy 
on such a day, and at such an hour of the afternoon ; as you were passing after- 
wards through the long gallery, in the castle of Charlottenburg, you met him 
again ; he then took you by the hand, and led you to such a window, where 

you could not be overheard, and then said to you these words : ,' The 

queen did not repeat the words, but she protested to us they were the very same 
her brother had pronounced, and that she retained the most perfect recollections 
of them. She added, that she nearly fainted at the shock she experienced : and 
she called on M. de Schwerin to answer for the truth of what she had said ; 
who, in his laconic style, contented himself with saying, 'All you have said, 
madam, is perfectly true — at least as far as I am concerned.' I ought to add,. 
(M. Thi#)ault continues,) that though th-e queen laid great stress on the truth of 
her recital, she professed herself, at the same time, incredulous to Swedenborg's. 
supposed conferences with the dead. 'A thousand events^,' said she, ' appear 
inexplicable and supernatural to us, who know only the irrmiediate conse- 



TESTIMONY OF THE QUEEN OF SWEDEN. 95 

quences of them; and men of quick parts, who are never so well pleased as 
when they exhibit something wonderful, take an advantage of this to gain an 
extraordinary reputation. Swedenborg was a man of learning, and of same 
talent in this way; but I cannot imagine by what means he obtained the know- 
ledge of what had been communicated to no one. However, I have no faith, in 
his having had a conference with my brother.' " 



These philosophical remarks of the queen's would deserve introduction in a work 
which I have often thought (says the Rev. S. Noble in his able " Appeal in Behalf of 
the Doctrines of the New Christian Church, ^-c," p. 203,) might be written, and be 
equally amusing and instructive, under the title of "the Credulity of Unbelievers." 
Here is an accomplished princess, who finds another person in possession of a secret 
which she is quite sure ^vas only known to herself and her deceased brother : she knows 
that he did not obtain it from herself, yet rather than believe that he obtained it from 
her brother, she imagines the existence oi a " talent'* incomparably more inexplicable ! 

The same observation (continues Mr. ISToble,) applies to several' other relators of the 
story. One of these is Baron de Grimm. He allows Swedfenborg to- have been " a 
man dislinguished not only by his probity, but also by his knowledge and his intelli- 
gence." [UVi homme distingud non seulement par sa probitd mais encore par ses connai- 
sdnces ct seslumieres.\ Yet he, after giving the above anecdote, gives this contradiction- 
iti-terms as his judgment on it : " This fact is confirmed by authorities so respectable, 
that it is impossible to deny it ; but the question is how to believe it !" \,Cc fait est con- 
fir m6 par des aiUoritis si respectables qu^ il est impossible de le nier ; mais le moyen d'y^ 
croire .''\* But Baron de Grimm was professedly a determined atheist, and therefore 
could not believe any fact, however evidenced, which supposes, as real, the existence 
of man after death. 

Another^elater of the anecdote is not much less inconsistent. This is Captain Charles 
Leonard de Sfahlhammer, Knight of the Royal Order of the Sword. Some editions of 
the story affirm, that what Swedenborg repeated to the queen were the contents of a 
letter which she had' received from her brother : and as the main facts were undeniable, 
some of Swedenborg's enemies, so late as t7S8, endeavored to account for them by the 
improbable tale, that Count Hopken had intercepted and opened the letter before the 
queen received it, and that he and another senator communicated the contents of it to 
Swedenborg, paying him for that purpose a mysterious visit in the night. To this 
Captain Stahlhammer replied, in a letter dated May 13th-, 1788, and printed in some of 
the Gazettes.f 

As we have a more authentic account of the first of tlie above-mentioned transactions 
in a Memoir of Swedenborg by C. Robsalim published by Dr. Tafel in his Magazine, 
we give it in this connexion, together with a confirmatory statement from Mad. de 
Marteville's second husband. — B. 

"An ambassador from Holland, named Marteville, died at Stockholm, After 
his death a considerable sum was demanded of liis widow in payment of a 
debt. She felt very certain the debt had been paid, but was unable to find a 
receipt for the money. After some time she found one among her husband's 
papers, and it was reported all over the city that Swedenborg had discovered it 
by means of a conversation with M. Marteville in the spiritual world. I in- 
quired of Swedenborg about the circumstance, and he told me that the lady had 

* See Memoirs Hist. Lit. et Anecdotiques, tirh de la Correspondence addressee au Due 
de Saxe Gotha par le Baron de Grimm. Tom. iii. p. 56. Ed. Lond. IS 13. 
t See Intellectual Repository for 1813, p. 370. 



m DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENFORG, 

been to him and told him her trouble, and he had promised that if he met fier 
husband in the spiritual world, be would inquire of Mm about the matter. 
* This soon happened,' continued Swedenborg, ' and M. Martevilfe told me 
that he would himself go to his house on the fallowing night to see after the re- 
ceipt.' 

" I received no* other answer for the lady and I have taiken no &ther part in the 
matter, but I have heard that the widow spoke to her husband in a dream, and 
he told her where to find the missing document in his private bureau." ' 

"We add an interesting statement concerning the anecdote respecting the widow of 
Mr. Von Marteville, contained in a ietter from the Danish General who was the second 
husband of that lady. It is published by Dr. Tafel in a note to the above memoir. — B. 

" Abouc a year after the death of M. Ton Marteville, my wife felt a desire to 
see the noiorious* and famous Baron Swedenborg, who at that time was her 
neighbor in Stcckholm. Several ladies of her acquaintance partook of her curi- 
osity to have a nearer view of so strange a person, 

** Accordingly the ladies went to his house and were admitted together. Swe- 
denborg received them in a .very beautiful garden, where they found him in an 
elegant summer-house, having an arched roof. 

•' Among other questions my wife asked Swedenborg whether he knew M. 
Von Marteville. He answered, No ; for while that gentleman was at the Swedish 
court, he was himself detained in London. 

" In passing, 1 may here mention that the story of the twenty-five thousand 
Dutch guilders is perfectly correct thus far, that a claim was instituted against 
my wife for that amount, and she could produce no discharge of^the debt. 
Meantime the circumstance was not mentioned in society. [M. Von Marteville 
had received the sum and paid it out again, but after his death no receipt could 
be found.] Eight days afterwards M. Von Marteville appeared to my wife in a 
dream, and mentioned to her a private place in his English cabinet, where she 
would find not only the receipt but also a hair-pin set with twenty brilliants, whicli 
had been given up as lost. This happened about two o'clock in the morning. 
Full of joy, my wife arose and found them in the place designated. She return- 
ed again to rest, and slept till nine o'clock. About eleven, the Baron Sweden- 
borg was announced. His first remark, before my wife had time to speak, was, 
that he had, during the preceding night, seen several spirits, and among others 
M. Von Marteville. He had wished to converse with him, but M. Von Marte- 
ville excused himself on the ground that he must go to discover to his wife 
something of importance ; that he then departed out of the society in which he 
had been a year, and would ascend to one far happier. 

•' This is the true statement of the affair in which my wife was concerned, as 
well with respect to the receipt as with the Baron Swedenborg. 

" I attempt not to penetrate into the mystery — I am not called on to do it. I 
am merely required to make a plain statement of facts. This duty I have per- 
formed, and it will give me pleasure to be assured that your reverence has de- 
rived from it the desired satisfaction. 

* In the original this word has a very contemptuous meaning and proves that the 
writer was not an adherent of Swedenborg, as no one friendly to him would have used 
it. 



TESTIMONY OF CAPTAIN DE STAHLHAMMER. 97 

*• My wife desires her respects to you. I am with all high consideration your 
devoted servant, &c." 



XV. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

CAPTAIN DE STAHLHAMMER, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD. 



This gentleman declares that his account " can be attested by many persons of dis- 
tinction, who were present, and are still alive." The letter is as follows : — 

« Stockholm, May 1 3, 1788. 

" I have read, with astonishment, the letter giving an account of the conver- 
sation which the famous Swedenborg had with the queen Louisa Ulrica ; the 
circumstances related in that letter are altogether false ; and I hope the author 
will excuse me, if, by a faithful account, which can be attested by many per- 
sons of distinction, who were present, and are still alive, I convince him how 
much he has been deceived. 

"In 1758, a short time after the death of the Prince of Prussia, Swedenborg 
came to court, where he was in the habit of attending regularly. As soon as 
he was perceived by the queen, she said to him, ' Well, Mr. Assessor, have you 
s'een my brother ?' Swedenborg answered, No ; whereupon she replied, ' If you 
should see him, remember me to him.' In saying this, she did but jest, and 
had no thought of asking him any information about her brother. Eight days 
afterwards, and not four-and-twenty hours, nor yet a particular audience, Swe- 
denborg came again to court, but so early that the queen had not left her apart- 
ment called the white room, where she was conversing with her maids of honor 
and other ladies of the court. Swedenborg did not wait for the queen's coming 
out, but entered directly into her apartment, and whispered in her ear. The 
queen, struck with astonishment, was taken ill, and did not recover herself for 
some time. After she was come to herself, she said to those about her, ' There 
is only God and my brother who can know what he has just told me.'' She ov/ned that 
he had spoken of her last correspondence with the prince, the subject of which 
was known to themselves alone. 

" I cannot explain how Swedenborg came to the knowledge of this secret; 
but this I can assert, upon my honor, that neither Count Hdpken, as the author 
of the letter falsely states, nor any other person, had intercepted the queen's 
letters ; the senate then permitting her to write to her brother without the least 
interruption, regarding her correspondence with him as a thing quite indifferent 
to the state. 



98 ' DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

"It is evident that the author of the above-mentioned letter is utterly ignorant 
of the character of Count H6pken. This respectable nobleman, who has ren- 
dered-the most important services to his country, possesses greatness of mind 
and goodness of heart, and his advanced age has in nowise impaired these val- 
uable endowments. During the whole of his administration, he united the most 
enlightened policy with the most scrupulous integrity, and was a declared 
enemy to secret intrigue and underhand devices, which he looked upon as 
means unworthy of accomplishing his purposes. 

" The author is no better acquainted with Assessor Swedenborg. The only 
weakness of this truly honest man was his belief in the apparition of spirits ; 
but I knew him for many years, and [ can confidently affirm, that he was as fully 
persuaded that he conversed with spirits, as I am that I am writing at this mo- 
ment. As a citizen, and as a friend, he was a man of the greatest integrity, 
abhorring imposture, and leading an exemplary life. 

" The explication, therefore, which Chevalier Baylon gives of this circum- 
stance, is void of foundation ; and the visit said to have been made in the night 
to Swedenborg, by Counts Hdpken and T , is purely invention. 

*' As to the rest, the author of the letter may be assured that I am no follower 
of Swedenborg ; the love of truth alone has induced me to relate, faithfully, a 
fact, which has been so often stated with details entirely false ; and I verify 
what Ihave just written wich the signature of my name : 

"Charles Leonard de StaJslhammer." 

This letter bears a double testimony in Swedenborg's favor : it establishes the reality 
of his intercourse with the^ spiritual world, and it corroborates the truth of his assertions 
respecting, the inability of miraculous evidence to communicate faith : for here is a 
writer decidedly affirming the certainty of a supernatural fact, and yet calling it a weak- 
ness in Swedenborg to believe in the apparition of spirits. 



XVI. 
TESTIMONY 

or THE celebrated GERMAN PHILOSOPHER 

EMANUEL KANT, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD. 



The opinion of this celebrated man respecting Swedenborg and his- extraordinary 
case, as having communication with the world of spirits, having been asked by a literary 
lady of quality, Madame de Knoblock, afterwards widow of Lieut.-Gen. Klingsporn, 
Kant replied in the following letter, dated Konigsberg, August 10th, 1758 : — 

" I would not have deprived myself so long of the honor and pleasure of obey^ 
ing the request of a lady, who is the ornament of her sex, in communicating the 
desired information, if I had not deemed it necessary previously to inform my- 



1 



TESTIMONY OF EMANUEL KANT. 99 

self thoronghly concerning the subject of your request. Permit me, gracious 
lady, to justify my proceedings in this matter, inasmuch as it might appear that 
an erroneous opinion had induced me to credit the various relations concerning 
it without careful examination. I am not aware that any body has ever per- 
ceived in me an inclination to the marvellous, or a weakness approaching to 
credulity. So much is certain, that, notwithstanduig all the narrations of appa- 
ritions and visions concerning the spiritual world, of which a great number of 
the most probable are known to me, I have always considered it to be most in 
agreement with the rule of sound reason to incline to the negative side ; not as 
if I had imagined such a case to be impossible , although we know but very 
little concerning the nature of a spirit, but because the instances are not in gene- 
ral sufficiently proved. There arise, moreover, from the incomprehensibility" and 
inutility of this sort of phenomena, too many difficulties ; and there are, on the 
other hand, so many proofs of deception, that I have never considered it neces- 
sary to suffer fear or dread to come upon me, either in the cemeteries of the 
dead, or in the darkness of night. This is the position in which my mind stood 
for a long time, until the accounts of Swedenborg came to my notice. 

"These accounts I received from a Danish officer, who was formerly my 
friend, and attended my lectures ; and who, at the table of the Austrian ambas- 
sador, Dietrichstein, at Copenhagen, together with several other guests, read a 
letter which the ambassador had lately received from Baron de Lutzow, the 
Mecklenburg ambassador at Stockholm ; in which he says, that he, in company 
with the Dutch ambassador, was present, at the queen of Sweden's residence, 
at the extraordinary transaction respecting Swedenborg, which your ladyship 
will undoubtedly have heard. The authenticity thus given to the a'ccount sur- 
prised me. For it can scarcely be believed, that one ambassador should com- 
municate a piece of information to another for public use, which related to the 
queen of the court where he resided, and which he himself, together with a 
splendid company, had the opportunity of witnessing, if it were not true. Now 
in order not to reject blindfold the prejudice against apparitions and visions by 
a new prejudice, I found it desirable to inform- myself as to the particulars of 
this surprising transaction. I accordingly wrote to the officer I have mentioned 
at Copenhagen, and made various inquiries respecting it. He answered that he 
had again had an interview concerning it with the Count Dietrichstein ; that the 
affair had really taken place in the manner described ; and that Professor Schlegel, 
also, had declared to him, that it could by no means be doubted. He advised 
me, as he was then going to the army under General St. Germain, to write to 
Swedenborg himself, in order to ascertain the particular circumstances of the 
extraordinary case. I then wrote to this singular man, and the letter was de- 
livered to him, at Stockholm, by an English merchant. I was informed that 
Swedenborg poUtely received the letter, and promised to answer it ; but the an- 
swer was omitted. In the mean time I made the acquaintance of an English 
gentleman who spent the last summer at this place, whom, relying on the 
friendship we had formed, I commissioned, as he was going to Stockholm, to 
make particular inquiries respecting the miraculous gift which Swedenborg is 
said to possess. In his first letter, he states, that the most respectable people in 
Stockholm declare, that the singular transaction alluded to had happened in the 
manner you have heard described. He had not then had an interview with Swe- 



I'OO DOCUMENTS CONCERNINQ SWEDENBORG. 

denborg, but hoped soon to embrace the opportunity ; although he found it diffi- 
cult to persuade himself that all could be true which the most reasonable persons 
of the city asserted, respecting his communication with the spiritual world. But 
his succeeding letters were quite of a different purport. He had not only spo- 
ken with Swedenborg himself, but had also visited him at his house ; and he is 
now ill the greatest astonishment respecting such a remarkable case. Sweden- 
borg is a reasonable, polite, and open-hearted man : he also is a man of learn- 
ing; and my friend has promised to send me some of his writings in a short 
time. He told this gentleman, without reserve, that God had accorded to him 
the remarkable gift of communicating with departed souls at his pleasure. In 
proof of this, he appealed to certain known facts. As h6 was reminded of my 
letter, he said that he was aware he had received it, and that he would already 
have answered it, had he not intended to make the whole of this singular affair 
public to the eyes of the world. He should proceed to London in the month of 
May this year, where he would publish a book, in which the answer to my letter, 
as to every point, might be met with. 

" In order, gracious lady, to give you two proofs, of which'the present exist- 
ing public is a witness, and the person who related them to me had the oppor- 
tunity of investigating them at the very place where they occurred, I will nar- 
rate to you the two following occurrences. 

[The first of these occurrences is that respecting Madame de Marteville, only 
diflfering from the relation of it given from Thiebault,* by representing the re- 
ceipt to have been found, by direction from the deceased M. de Marteville, in a 
secret drawer of a bureau, which bureau, ignorant of the secret drawer. Mad. 
de M. had previously searched in vain. The other aff'air is the fire at Stockholm ; 
and the particulars are given more minutely by Kant than in any account be- 
fore known in England. He proceeds thus : — ] 

" But the following occurrence appears to me to have the greatest^eight of 
proof, and to set the assertion respecting Swedenborg's extraordinary gift out of 
all possibility of doubt. In the year 1756, when Swedenborg, towards the end 
of September, on Saturday, at- four o'clock p.m., arrived at Gottenburg from 
England, Mr. William Castel invited him to his house, together with a party of 
fifteen persons. About six o'clock, Swedenborg went out, and, after a short in- 
terval, returned to the company, quite pale and alarmed. He said that a danger- 
ous fire had just broken out in Stockholm, at the Sudermalm (Gottenburg is 
about 50 milesf from Stockholm), and that it was spreading very fast. He was 
restless, and went out often. He said that the house of one of his friends, whom 
he named, was already in ashes, and that his own was in danger. At eight 
o'clock, after he had been out again, he joyfully exclaimed, ' Thank God ! the 
fire is extinguished, the third door from my house,' This news occasioned great 
commotion through the whole city, and particularly amongst the company in 
which he was. It was announced to the governor the same evening. On the 
Sunday morning, Swedenborg was sent for by the governor, who questioned 
him concerning the disaster. Swedenborg described the fire precisely, how it 
had begun, and in what manner it had ceased, and how long it had continued. 
On the same day the news was spread through the city, and, as the governor 



* See above p. 93. f German miles ; nearly 300 English. 



TESTIMONY OF EMANUEL KANT. IM 

had thought it worthy of attention, the consternation was considerably increased ; 
because many were in trouble on account of their friends and property, which 
might have been involved in the disaster. On the Monday evening a messenger 
arrived at Gottenburg, who was despatched during the time of the fire. In the 
letters brought by hirn, the fire was described precisely in the manner stated by 
Swedenborg. On the Tuesday morning the royal courier arrived at the gover- 
ner's, with the melancholy intelligence of the fire, of the loss which it had oc- 
casioned, and of the houses it had damaged and ruined, not in the least differ- 
ing from that which Swedenborg had given immediately it had ceased -, for the 
fire was extinguished at eight o'clock. 

"What can be brought forward against the authenticity of this occurrence .=* 
My friend who wrote this to me, has not only examined the circumstances of 
this extraordinary case at Stockholm, bntalso, about two months ago, at Gotten- 
burg, where he is acquainted with the most respectable houses, and where he 
could obtain the most authentic and complete -information; as the greatest part 
of the inhabitants, who are still alive, were witnesses to the memorable occur- 
rence. — I am, with profound reverence, &c. &c., 

" Emanuel Kant."* 

Kant, in another \vork,f bears testimony to the memorable occurrence respecting the 
queen of Sweden and Swedenborg, mentioned above p. 94. 

*' Towards the end of 1761| (says Kant), M. Swedenborg [Swedenborg] was 
invite^ to the court of a princess, whose great understanding and intelligence 
rendered it almost impossible that she could be duped or deceived. Sweden- 
borg's visit to the queen was occasioned by the universal report of the visions 
of this man. After several questions, the object of which appeared rather to 
sport with his imaginaions, than to procure any news from the other world, the 
queen, before they parted, gave him a secret commission, which had relation to 
his intercourse with spirits. After some days Swedenborg came with the an- 
swer, which was of that nature, as to place the queen, according to her own 
confession, in the greatest astonishment, because she foimd it was true, and, at 
the same time, declared, that no living man upon earth could have communi- 
cated it to him. This occurrence was recorded in the Report of an ambassador at the 
court of Sweden, ivho was present at the time, to another ambassador at Copenhagen, and 
it agrees precisely with the investigation which has been made respecting it."§ 

Dr. Clemm, Professor of Theology at Tubingen, also records, in one of his works,(| 
these three remarkable occurrences. It appears, that a German prelate, Oetinger, a 
man of great reputation, in his day, on account of his learning and piety, wrote to the 



* The above letter is taken from a work entitled, Darstellung des Lihens und Charak- 
ters Immanuel KanVs, von Ludwig Ernst Borowski, von Kant sclbst gcnnau rividirt und 
herichtigt. Konigsberg, 1804. That is, " Description of the Life and Character of 
Emanuel Kant, by Lewis Earnest Borowski: revised and corrected by Kant himself." 

t " Trdume eines Geistersehers, erl'dutert durch Trdume der Metaphysick. Konigsberg, 
1776," p. 85. Dreams of a Spirit Seer, illustrated by dreams of Metaphysics. 

t This should be 1758. 

§ The Italics are Kant's, which indicate, that he hihriself did not doubt the truth of 
the memorable occurrence. 

I! " VoUst. Einleittmg in die Religion v/nd gcsante Theologie. Bd. 4. Tiib. 1767," p. 
206. 



102 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

queen of Sweden expressly to ascertain whether the report respecting her own case and 
Swedenborg were true. The queen replied that it was true.* 



" Swedenborg's omitting to answer (says Mr. Noble,t) by letter, professor 
Kant's inquiries relating to the above affairs, may appear extraordinary. But it 
is to be remembered, that he never, himself, laid any stress upon these super- 
natural proofs of the truth of his pretentions ; and never does he appeal to them, 
or so much as mention them in his works. How strong an evidence is this of 
his elevation of mind ; and of his perfect conviction of the truth of the views he 
was made an instrument for unfolding, with his own divine appointment to that 
purpose, as standing in no need of such evidence for its support ! Could it be 
possible for any of the merely fanatical pretenders to divine communications to 
appeal to such testimonies of supernatural endowment, how eagerly would they 
seek to silence objectors by referring to the queens, counts, ambassadors, gov- 
ernors, and university professors, that had been witnesses of their power ! But 
it is. precisely on*account of the silencing nature of such evidence that Sweden- 
borg declines to appeal to it. Doubtless, however, it was of Divine Providence 
that occasions arose which constrained him to give such demonstrations, and 
that they were recorded by others : because such things serve for confirmations 
of the truth, though they are not the proper grounds of its original reception. 
When presented also upon testimony, and at a distance of time, they lose that 
compulsive character which they possess when they take place, or neafly so, 
before our eyes : and thus they may then become useful to draw the attention of 
receptive minds to the truth, which, when known, may convince by its own evi- 
dence. 

" That supernatural evidences, at a distance of time, lose that compulsive 
character which they possess when they take place, or nearly so before our 
eyes ; and that minds not receptive of the truth, will then throw off the atten- 
tion to it that was only compulsively induced, are facts of which Kant himself 
afforded a melancholy example : for he afterwards wrote a pamphlet in which 
he depreciates Swedenborg and his writings. But, as observed by the editors, 
when his letter was first published in English in The Intellectual Repository : — J 

" On the whole, this letter of Kant's must certainly be deemed a very valuable 
document, and ought to have great weight with all unprejudiced minds. He 
here, it must be allowed, exhibits the true spirit of a philosopher. Prejudiced, 
at first, like most men of science, against all belief in spiritual intercourse, he 
consents, on Ending b. primci facie case made out in favor of that of Swedenborg, 
to investigate the matter thoroughly : he does so : and comes at last to the con- 
clusion, that some of the cases are so well established, as ' to set the assertion re- 
specting Swedenhorg's extraordinary gift out of all possibility of doubt.' Admit this, 



* See also ^"■Stilling's Theori^ der Gcister-ku/ndc, ^c. f' or Theory of Pneumatology, 
English translation, p. 88, note. 

t See " Appealy ^c.," p. 213. 

X For January, 18-30, Irom which some of the preceding remarks are abridged. See 
all that is there said upon Kant and liis system, p. 57-62. For what he afterwards 
wrote against Swedenborg, with an exposure of its utter futility, see pp. 197, 198, 199, 
of the No. for July, 1834. 



'REMARKS ON THE TESTIMONY OF KANT. 103 

and as we have already seen, the truth of his havmg received such a divine 
commission as he affirms he had, follows, of course. To allow the reality of 
his ' extraordhiary gift,' and to reject his account of the way and purpose in and 
for which he received it, is to make a fact unintelligible, and even incredible, 
though admitted to be indubitable. Nor will the attempted solution of some of 
the German writers, followed by some in England, at all meet the difficulty. 
AV hen they tell us, that his alleged spiritual experience was nothing else than 
the vivid embodying of the conceptions of his own mind, they tell us what, so 
far concerns the relations in his writings, though not easy to believe, it were 
also not easy to disprove. But how does it explain the cases mentioned by 
Kant? Supposing Swedenborg able to form so vivid a conception of the de- 
ceased M. de Marteville as to fancy he heard him speak ; yet that a piece of in- 
formation respecting a fact in the natural world, thus heard only in imagination, 
should be verified by the event, were indeed an extraordinary coincidence. How 
lively soever the idea that he might be able to conjure up in imagination of the 
prince of Prussia; yet that he should succeed in extracting from this phantom, 
the mere creation of his own mind, the knowledge of the secrets between the prince 
and the queen, never told to any other person, w^ere also a miracle, such as only 
the credulity of sceptics could be capacious enough to take in. And with what- 
ever force of coloring he might manage to picture to his fancy a fire three hun- 
dred miles off, till at last, believing it real, he becomes alarmed for his own 
house ; yet that everything thus imagined should prove true in every particular, if 
nothing hut the activity of his own conceptions had given it birth, were a phenom- 
enon to puzzle much wiser philosophers than either Germany, or any other 
country, ever beheld, hi declaring, tb.en, that some of the examples are such 
as ' to set the assertion of Swedenborg's extraordinary gift out of all possibility 
of doubt,' Kant has fixed the brand of folly on those of his own disciples, who 
sagely resolve the whole into vividness of conception. Nor is this testimony of 
Kant at all weakened by his own defective consistency, in afterwards slandering 
Swedenborg's works. An adequate cause hpre operated: and behef, solely 
, founded on the basis of miracle, is never permanent. When he came to the con- 
( viction of the reality of Swedenborg's spiritual intercourse, he viewed this merely 
' as an extraordinary fact, and did not connect it with any particular views of 
truth. When he afterwards found that the views of truth with which it was 
I connected by Swedenborg, either militated against his own, or w^ould deprive 
I him of the praise of the best of them, the pride of self-intelligence interfered ; 
' and upon the altar of this demon is to be immolated the adversary or the rival. 
Then he labors to depreciate, whom, in his letter to Madame de Knoblock, he 
had taken pleasure to honor. That letter remains, still honorable to Sweden- 
, borg ; and the writer's departure from the candid spirit which dictated it, reflects 
I disgrace only upon himself." 



104 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

XVII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

« 

DR. JOHANN HEINRICH JUNG-STILLING 

PROFESSOR OF THE UNIVERSITIES OF HEIDELBERG AND MARBURG, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE SPIRITUAL 

WORLD. 



The next testimony we shall adduce to prove that Swedenborg had intercourse with 
the spiritual world, is that of Dr. J. H. Jung-Stilling, late Professor of the uiuversities of 
Heidelberg and Marburg, and private aulic-counsellor to the Grand Duke of Baden. 
This testimony is recorded in his work, entitled " Theory der Geisterkunde."* Stilling 
was the author of several works much read in Germany ; he was a man of great learn- 
ing and piety, and highly respected. In the work above mentioned he records the 
three occurrences concerning the queen of Sweden, the mislaid receipt, and the fire at 
Stockholm. Although Stilling did not receive the theological doctrines of Swedenborg, 
having evidently never read them, or having only seen his work on Heaven and Hell) 
and a few extracts published by Oetinger, he firmly believed that Swedenborg had in- 
tercourse with the world of spirits, for, says Stilling, '*he occasionally furnished proofs 
which were unobjectionable j it is true that these statements have been controverted, and the 
good man accused of deception ; but the latter I loudly deny,"-f Having related the oc- 
currences above mentioned, he says, " I must now add a fourth experimental proof 
which has never been previously made public, and which is fully as important as any 
of the foregoing. I can vouch for the truth of it, with the greatest confidence.''^ 

"About the year 1770, there was a merchant in Elberfield, with whom, during 
seven years of my*Vesidence there I hved in close intimacy. He was a strict 
mystic in the purest sense. He spoke httle ; but what he said, was like golden 
fruit on a salver of silver. He would not have dared, for all the world, know- 
ingly to have told a falsehood. This friend oi mine, who has long ago left this 
world for a better, related to me the following anecdote. His business required 
him to take a journey to Amsterdam, where Swedenborg at that time resided ; 
and having heard and read much of this strange individual, he formed the in- 
tention of visiting him, and becoming better acquainted with him. He therefore 
called upon him, and found a very venerable-looking friendly old man, who re- 
ceived him politely, and required him to be seated ; on which the following con- 
versation began: — 'Merchant. Having been called hither by business, I could 
not deny myself the honor, Sir, of paying my respects to you : your writings 
have caused me to regard you as a very remarkable man. S. May I ask you 
where you are from ? M. I am from Elberfield, in the grand duchy of Berg. 
Your writings contain so much of what is beautiful and edifying, that they have 
made a deep impression upon me : but the source from whence you depive 'them 

* " Theory of Pneumatology,^c.^' See a translation of this work by Samuel Jackson, 
London, lb'34. 
t English translation, p. 88. $ P. 90. 



TESTIMONY OF DR. H. JUNG- STILLING. 105 

is so extraordinary, so strange, and uncommon, that you will perhaps not take 
it amiss of a sincere friend of truth, if he desire incontestible proofs, that you 
really have intercourse with the invisible world. S. It would be very unrea- 
sonable if I took it amiss ; but I think I have given sufficient proofs, which can- 
not be contradicted. M. Are they those, that are so well known, respecting the 
queen, the fire in Stockholm, and the receipt .' S. Yes, those are they, and they 
are true. M. And yet many objections are brought against them. Might I ven- 
ture to propose, that you give me a similar proof.' S. Why not .' Most willingly ! 
M. I had formerly a friend, who studied divinity at Duisburg, where he fell into 
a consumption, of which he died. I visited this friend, a short time before his 
decease; we conversed together on an important topic: could you learn from 
him what was the subject of our discourse ? S. We will see. What was the 
name of your friend ? The merchant told him his name. S. How long do you 
remain here ? M. About eight or ten days. S. Call upon me again in a few 
days. I will see if I can find your friend.' The merchant took his leave and 
despatched his business. Some days after, he went again to Swedenborg, in 
anxious expectation. The old gentleman met him with a smile, and said, * I 
have spoken with your friend ; the subject of your discourse was, the restitution 
of all things.' ^He then related to the merchant, with the greatest precision, what 
he, and what his deceased friend, had maintained. My friend turned pale ; for 
this proof was powerful and invincible. He inquired further, • How fares it 
with my friend ? Is he in a state of blessedness ?' Swedenborg answered, ' No, 
he is not yet in heaven ; he is still in Hades, and torments himself continually 
with the idea of the restitution of all things.' This answer caused my friend the 
greatest astonishment. He ejaculated, ' My God ! what, in the other world r 
Swedenborg replied, ' Certainly ; a man takes with him his favorite inclinations 
and opinions ; and it is very difficult to be divested of them. We ought, there- 
fore, to lay them aside here.' My friend took his leave of this remarkable man, 
perfectly convinced, and returned back to Elberfield. What says highly enlight- 
ened infidelity to this ? It says, ' Swedenborg was a cunning fellow, and that 
he employed a secret spy to get the matter out of my friend.' To this I candidly 
reply, that Swedenborg was •of too noble a mind, and had too much of the fear 
of God ; ^nd my friend was too discreet to act in such a manner. Such like 
evasions may be classed under the head of the * transfiguration of the Redeemer 
by means of moonshine i'* 

* As taught ia the Neological Scheols of Theology in Germany, in which they en- 
deavored to account for all the miracles mentioned in the Scriptures on merely natural 
principles. These neologians, as they are called, are the confirmed Sadducees of the 
present day. It must, however, be gladly admitted, that, at the present time, this ab- 
surd and pro-fane system of explaining the Scriptures is not so prevalent ia Germany as 
it was. 



106 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBOKG, 

XVIII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

THE REV. JOHN WESLEY, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD.* 



"Among Mr. Wesley's preachers, in the year 1772, was the late Mr. Samuel 
Smith, a man of great piety and integrity, who afterwards became one of the 
first ministers i^ our church. Having heard a curious anecdote, said to rest on 
his authority, I wrote (says Mr. Noble,) to Mr. J. I. Hawkins, the well-known 
engineer, who had been intimately acquainted with Mr. Smith, to request an 
exact account of it. The following (a little abbreviated) is his answer; it is 
dated February 6th, 1826:— 

"Dear Sir, 

" In answer to your inquiries, I am able to state, that I have a clear recollec- 
tion of having repeatedly heard the Rev. Samuel Smith say, about the year 1787 
or 1788, that in the latter end of February, 1772, he, with some other preachers, 
was in attendance upon the Rev. John Wesley, taking instructions and assisting 
him in the preparations for his great circuit, which Mr. Wesley was about to 
commence ; that while thus in attendance, a letter came to Mr. Wesley, which 
he perused with evident astonishment ; that, after a pause, he read the letter to 
the company ; and that it was couched in nearly the following words rf — 

" 'Great Bath-street, Coldbath Fields, Feb., 1772, 

«' ' Sir, — I have been informed in the world of spirits that you have a strong de- 
sire to converse with me ; 1 shall be happy to see you if you will favor me with 
a visit. — I am. Sir, your humble Servant, 

"'Eman. Sweden borg.' 

*' Mr. Wesley frankly acknowledged to the company, that he had been very 
strongly impressed with a desire to see and converse wdth Swedenborg, and 
that he had never mentioned that desire to any one. 

" Mr. Wesley wrote for answer, that he was then closely occupied in prepar- 
ing for a six months' journey y but would do himself the pleasure of waiting upon 
Mr. Swedenborg soon after his return to London. 

*' Mr. Smith further informed me^ that he afterwards learned that Swedenborg 
wrote in reply, that the visit proposed by Mr. Wesley would be too late, as he, 
Swedenborg, should go into the world of spirits on the 29th day of the ne^t 
month, never more to return. 



* Extracted from Mr. Noble's '* Appeal in Behalf of the Doctrines of the New Church, 
^c." pp. 246-251. The reader's attention is especially referred to this work, as an 
able vindication and confirmation of the said " Doctrines.'* 

t The letter was most probably in Latin ; but Mr. Wesley, no doubt, would read in 
in English^ 



TESTIMONY OF THE REV. JOHN WESLEY. 107 

" Mr. Wesley went the circuit, and on his return to London [if not, as is most 
probable, before], was informed of the fact, that Swedenborg had departed this 
life on the 29th of March preceding. 

" This extraordinary correspondence induced Mr. Smith to examine the writ- 
ings of Swedenborg ; and the result was, a firm conviction of the rationality and 
truth of the heavenly doctrines promulgated in those invaluable writings, which 
doctrines he zealously labored to disseminate during the remainder of his natu- 
ral life. 

" That Mr. Smith was a man of undoubted veracity, can be testified by several 
persons now living, besides myself; the fact, therefore, that such a correspond- 
ence did take place between the Honorable Emanuel Swedenborg and the Rev. 
John Wesley, is established upon the best authority. 

" On referi'ing to Mr. Wesley's printed journal, it may be seen, that he left Lon- 
don on the first of March in the year 1772 ; reached Bristol on the third, Worces- 
ter on the 14th, and Chester on the 29th, which was the day of Swedenborg's 
final departure from this world. Mr. Wesley, in continuing his circuit, visited 
Liverpool, and various towns in the north of England, and in Scotland, return- 
ing through Northumberland and Durham to Yorkshire, and thence through 
Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Shropshire, to Wales; thence to Bristol, Sahsbury, 
Winchester, and Portsmouth, to London^ where he arrived on the 10th of October 
in the same year, having been absent rather more than six months. 

" I feel it my duty to accede to your request, and allow my name to appear 
as your immediate voucher. — I remain, dear Sir, yours, very sincerely, 

"John Isaac Hawkins." 

" To this I can add, that the Rev. M. Sibly has assured me, that he has heard 
Mr. Smith relate the above anecdote ; and that he could mention, if necessary 
several other persons still living who must have heard it too. He fully, also, 
supports Mr. Hawkins' statement in regard to Mr. Smith's veracity. Thus it is 
impossible to doubt that Mr. Smith affirmed it ; and it is difficult to suppose that 
he could either wilfully or unintentionally misrepresent an incident which must 
have impressed him so strongly, and of which his consequent adoption of Swe- 
denborg's sentiments formed a collateral evidence. 

" It may here be proper, to observe, that the translation of Swedenborg's little 
work ' On the Intercourse between the Soul and the Body' had been published not long 
previously (in 1770), with a preface by the translator, addressed to the Univer- 
sities, urging the author's claims to attention. This Mr. Wesley had probably- 
seen, and had thence conceived the desire he acknowledges to see the author. 
The discovery that this desire, though it had remained a secret in his own breast, 
was known to Swedenborg must have affected him very strongly : it must have 
convinced him that Swedenborg's assertion, that he possessed the privilege of 
conversing with angels and spirits, was true : and it is natural to suppose that he 
would conclude from it, that the cause assigned by Swedenborg of his having 
received this privilege, namely, that he might be qualified for a holy office to 
which he had been called, was true also. There is further, the strongest evi- 
dence that Mr. Wesley's conviction went as far as this. I had heard an anec- 
dote demonstrating it, related in conversation by the reverend and venerable Mr. 
Clowes, rector of St. John's, Manchester, whose high character for every quality 



108 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

that can adorn a minister of the gospel, and of course for veracity among the 
rest, is acknowledged by all who knew him (and few were known through a 
wider circle) — ^by those who differed from him as well as by those who agreed 
with him in theological sentiment; I therefore wrote to him, to request a written 
statement of the particulars, with leave to publish it with his name ; with which 
request he kindly complied. The part of his letter (dated January 19, 1826,) 
which relates immediately to this subject, is as follows : — 

*' ' My very dear Sir,— In full and free compliance with your wishes, as express- 
ed in your kind favor of the 16tb, I send you the following memoir of the late 
Mr. Wesley, as communicated to me by my late pious and learned friend, Rich- 
ard Houghton, Esq., of Liverpool, who was also intimately acquainted with Mr, 
Wesley, insomuch that the latter gentleman never visited Liverpool without pass- 
ing some time with Mr. Houghton. As near as I can recollect, it was in the 
spring of the year 1773 that I received the communication, one morning, when I 
called on Mr. Houghton at his house, and at a time, too, when the writings of 
the Hon. E. Swedenborg began to excite public attention. These writings were 
at that time unknown to myself, but not so to my friend Mr. Houghton, who was 
in the habit of correspondence with the Rev. T. Hartley on the subject, and was 
very eager to make me acquainted with them. Accordingly, in the course of 
our conversation, my friend took occasion to mention the name of Mr. Wesley, 
and the manner in which he, on a late visit to Liverpool, had expressed his sen- 
timents on those writings. We may now (said Mr. Wesley,) burn all our books of 
Theology. God has sent us a teacher from heaven ; and in the doctrines of Swedenborg 
we may learn all that it is necessary for us to know.' " 

" The manner in which Mr. Wesley here expressed himself was strong indeed ; 
so much so, that were it not certain that his mind must have been at that time 
under a very powerful influence in Swedenborg's favor, he might be suspected 
to have spoken ironically. This I observed in my letter to Mr. Clowes ; to which 
he replies, ' I can hardly conceive, from the manner in which it was expressed 
by Mr. Houghton, that irony had anything to do with it:' and Mr. Houghton " 
must have known with certainty whether it had or not. His repeating Mr. 
Wesley's observation to Mr. Clowes, as an inducement to him to peruse the 
writings of Swedenborg, is a complete proof that Mr. H. believed it to mean 
what it expresses. But an examination of dates will show, that Mr. Wesley's 
statement to that gentleman was made while the impression from Swedenborg's 
supernatural communication was acting in all its force. Mr. Clowes' interview 
with Mr. Houghton was in the spring of 1773. Mr. Wesley does not appear ta 
have been at Liverpool between that time and the lOth of the preceding October, 
when he returned from his last great circuit. In that circuit he did visit Liver- 
pool, and was there early in April, 1772. This, then, must be the 'late visit' 
mentioned by Mr. Houghton ; and this was within six weeks after he had received the 
extraordinary communication from Swedenborg. This is certain : and it is also 
highly probable, that, at the time of his visiting Liverpool, the effect of that com- 
munication was greatly strengthened, by the verification of the announcement, 
which, we have seen, Swedenborg had made to him, of the day of his own 
death. He died, as he had announced, on the 29th of March : there can be little 
doubt that a notice of it appeared in the papers : it would thence, it is highly 
probable, be known to Mr. Wesley when he was at Liverpool, about a fortnight 



TESTIMONY OF THE REV. JOHN WESLEY. 109 

afterwards : and the words he then uttered to Mr. Houghton will not appear 
stronger than he might be expected to use, when two such recent and completely 
incontrovertible proofs of the truth of Swedenborg's claims were operating on 
his mind. 

** Yet Mr. Wesley, thus miraculously convinced of the truth of Swedenborg's 
claim (as far, at least, as relates to his intercourse with the spiritual world), 
afterwards exerted himself to check the extension of the same conviction to 
others ! — in which, however, he only afforded a proof of Swedenborg's constant 
assertion, that miraculous evidence is inefficacious for producing any real or 
permanent change in a man's confirmed religious sentiments. When Mr. Wes- 
ley uttered the strong declaration respecting Swedenborg and his writings, he 
spoke of the latter, rather from what he expected to find them, than from what 
he actually knew them to be. The probability is, that he at this time knew little 
more of them than he had learned from the tract ' On the Intercourse ;' which 
contains, probably nothing that he would except against; especially as it is 
certain, as will be seen presently, that even the treatise On Heaven and Helh 
which gives the main results of Swedenborg's spiritual experience, was not con- 
demned by him. But when he came to find that Swedenborg's writings mili- 
tated against some of the sentiments that he had strongly confirmed in his o'wn 
mind ; these, which were his interior convictions, gradually threw off the ex- 
terior conviction arising from merely outward though miraculous evidence: 
hence he afterwards accepted the false report of Mathesius,* and promoted its 
circulation. Indeed, there can be no doubfthat, then, such a statement as that 
of Mathesius would operate as a relief to him ; for though he could not receive 
the whole of Swedenborg's- doctrines, the positive proof he possessed of the 
author's supernatural knowledge must often have disturbed him in his rejection 
of them : he must therefore have been glad to meet with anything which could 
make him,' in regard to that rejection, better satisfied with himself. Finally, per- 
haps, other causes assisted to strengthen his opposition. When first he publish- 
ed the slanderous report (in 1781), he still seems to have had some misgivings ; 
hence he prefaced it with the acknowledgment, that Swedenborg was ' a very 
great man,' and that in his writings ' there are many excellent things ;' when he after- 
wards seemed less inclined to admit so much, although, no doubt, he still spoke 
sincerely, a little human frailty, perhaps, influenced his judgment. It is well 
known that Mr. Wesley was *ihvays prompt in taking measures to put down 
anything like rebellion among his disciples, — anything that tended to the dimi- 
nution of his authority over their minds. Now it is a certain fact, that Mr. 
Smith was not the only one of his pupils who began to think the doctrines of 
the New Church superior to those of Methodism : among his other preachers 
who came to the same conclusion, were Mr. James Hindmarsh, Mr. Isaac Haw- 
kins, and Mr. R. Jackson, deceased, with Mr. J. W. Salmon and Mr. T. Parker, 
still living ;t all of whom became active promoters of those doctrines : it there- 
fore is not to be wondered at, if Mr. Wesley at last took the most decisive steps 
to check their further extension among his flock. 

" The above appears to me to be a fair and highly probable account of the 

♦ Who reported that Swedenborg had a fever, and that he had been deranged ; see 
following document. 
t When the first edition of the " Appeal, ^c." was published. 



110 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

progress, on this subject, of Mr. Wesley's mind. It is not, however, here offered 
with the view of casting any imputation on his memory. I have little doubt, 
that, though some erroneous sentiments confirmed in his understanding pre- 
vented him from accepting, in this world, the doctrines of the New Church, his 
intentions were upright, and there was a principle of real good in his heart, 
which, in the other life would throw off the errors that obscured it, and enable 
him to receive the truth. This, it is probable, was seen by Swedenborg, and 
was the reason of his inviting him to an interview: and thus, I trust, though Mr. 
Wesley acted chiefly as an opponent to him while on earth, he may now be 
associated with him in heaven. Let it, also, be remembered, that for the alleged 
facts published by Mr. Wesley, Mr. Wesley himself is not responsible : he was 
herein imposed upon by Mathesius. Let not, then, his followers still confirm 
themselves against Swedenborg's testimony by what Mr. Wesley published 
against him : let them rather weigh, without Mr. Wesley's prejudices, the reasons 
he had, and might have had, for coming to a finally favorable conclusion ; and let 
them accept the sentiments Vv^hich, we may hope, Mr. Wesley now holds, in- 
stead of adhering to those which he, in all probability, has rejected." 



XIX. 

REFUTATION OF THE FALSE REPORTS 

PROPAGATED BY 

THE REV. MR. WESLEY. 



" It has given much pain," says Mr, Noble in the same work, p. 243, " to the 
receivers of the doctrines communicated in the writings of Swedenborg, that 
the circulation of the report of his insanity should have been materially promoted 
by a man so much entitled to respect as the late Rev. Mr. Wesley. It is how- 
ever certain, that in the part which that respectable person took in the affair, he 
was completely imposed upon by the minister of the Swedish Chapel in Lon- 
don, Mr. Mathesius, who was Swedenborg's personal and violent enemy. Mr. 
Wesley, indeed, professes to give his statement on the authority of a Mr. Brock- 
mer, as well as of Mathesius : this, however, was only because Mathesius told him 
that he derived his information from Brockmer ; but this, Brockmer totally denied^" 
as is evident from the following document : — 

*' Refutation of the false Reports propagated by Mr. Wesley * 

«♦ Mr. Wesley asserted, in his Arminian Magazine for August, 1783, p. 438, that 
he was informed by one Mr. Brockmer, of London, and also by Mr. Mathesius, 
a Swedish clergyman, that Swedenborg, while he lodged at the house of the 
former, ' had a violent fever, in the height of which, being totally delirious, he 
broke from Mr. Brockmer, ran into the street stark naked, proclaimed himself 

* See Hindmarsh's " Vindication of the Character and Writings of the Hon. Emanuel 
Swedenborg, ^c," pp. 15-20.' 2nd Edit. 



REFUTATION OF MR. WESLEY'S FALSE REPORTS. Ill 

the Messiah, and rolled himself in the mire.' Being desirous (says the Rev, 
Robert Hindmarsh), of ascertaining the truth or falsehood of this story from Mr, 
Brockmer's own mouth, I made it ray busmess, in company with three other 
gentlemen now deceased, to wait upon him at his apartments in Fetter-lane, and 
to ask him whether he had ever communicated to Mr. Wesley, or to any other 
person, such information as above stated, at the same time showmg him the 
different numbers of the JMagazine, in which the reports published by Mr. Wes- 
ley are contained. After hearing the passages read, Mr. Brockmer, without 
hesitation, denied the fact, positively declaring, • thafhe had never opened his mouth 
on the subject to Mr. Wesley, nor had he ever given such an account to any other person:'' 
and he seemed much displeased, that Mr, Wesley should have taken the liberty 
to make use of- his name in public print, without his knowledge or consent. 
* Swedenborg,' said he, * was never affiicted with any illness,* much less with a violent 
fever, while at my house : nor did he ever break from me in a delirious state, and run in- 
to the street stark naked, and there proclaim himself the Messiah, as Mr. Wesley has un- 
justly represented. But perhaps he may have heard a report to that effect from some other 
person; and it is well known, that Mr. Wesley is a very credulous man, and easily to be 
imposed upon by any idle tale, from whatever quarter it may come.' 

" I then put the following question to Mr. Brockmer : ' Supposing it to be true, 
that Swedenborg did actually see and converse with angels and spirits, did you 
evei observe anything in his behavior, that might not naturally be expected on 
such an extraordinary occasion?' He replied as follows :' If I believed that to 
be true, I should not wonder at anything he said or did; but should rather won- 
der, that the surprise and astonishment which he must have felt on such an oc- 
casion, did not betray him into more unguarded expressions than were ever 
known to escape him : for he did and said nothing, but what I could easily ac- 
count for in my own mind, if I really believed «vhat he declares in his writings 
to be true.' 

" It is to be observed, that Mr. Brockmer was one of the people called Mora- 
vians, who are by no means friendly to the doctrines of the New Church, as laid 
down in the writings of Swedenborg. The testimony, therefore, of such a man 
in favor of the equable and becoming deportment of his noble lodger, and to the 
silencing of those unfounded reports, to which Mr. Wesley (once an admirer of 
Swedenborg and his writings, but afterwards an avowed enemy to both),t so 
hastily and unworthily lent himself, must be received with due respect by every 
candid and unprejudiced mind. 

" It appears, then, that the report of Swedenborg's having been seized with 
a fever, in the height of which he broke from jNIr. Brockmer, ran into the street 
naked, and proclaimed himself the Messiah, is totally false. But even supposing 
it to be true, that he once had a fever accompanied with delirium, an affliction 
to which the wisest and best of men are subject, what has this to do with the 
general tenor of his writings, composed while he was in perfect health ? Is the 
character of a man to be estimated by what he says or does in such a state ? 
Would iNIr. Wesley, or any other person, wish to be judged in this way .' 

" Mr. Brockmer died a few months after he made the declaration above recited : 

* That Swedenborg enjoyed excellent health, and was never known, in his own 
country, to have had a violent fever, is asserted by M. Sandel ; see p. 36, and note 
t See above pp. 106-lOS. 



112 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

but the peruke-maker alluded to by Mr. Wesley, namely, Mr, Richard Shear- 
smith,* who lived in Coldbath Fields, Clerkenwell, and at whose house Sweden- 
borg afterwards lodged and died, survived Mr. Brockmermany years. Him also 
I well knew, and have often had occasion to speak to him of the character, 
habits, and manners of Swedenborg : and he uniformly gave the most unequiv- 
ocal and honorable testimony concerning him, both with respect to the good- 
ness of his heart, and the soundness of his understanding. He declared him- 
self ready to attest (upon oath, if required), that, ' from the first day of his 
coming to reside at his house, to the last day of his life, he always conducted 
himself in the most rational, prudent, pious, and christian-like manner: and he 
was firmly of opinion, that every report injurious to his character had been 
raised^merely from malice or disaff'ection to his writings, by persons of a bigoted 
and contracted spirit.' Mr. Shearsmith has been dead now for some years, I 
saw him not long before his death ; and he continued to bear the same testimony, 
which he had so often repeated in my hearing during the course of the thirty 
years that I had known him. 

" The other person, whom Mr. Wesley names as having given him the same 
information as Mr. Brockmer had done, was Mr. Mathesius, a Swedish clergy- 
man. Of the credit due to this Mathesius, the following extract of a letter from 
Christopher Springer, Esq., a Swedish gentleman of distinction then resident in 
London, and the intimate friend of Swedenborg, will enable the reader to form 
a just and correct estimate. Speaking of Swedenborg's death, he observes,t 
* When the deceased found his end approaching, and expressed a wish to have 
the communion administered to him, somebody present at the time proposed 
sending for Mr. Mathesius, the officiating minister of the Swedish Church. This 
person was known to be a 'professed enemy of Swedenborg's, and had set his face 
against his writings. It was he 'that raised and spread the false account of Swe- 
denborg's having been deprived of his senses. Swedenborg therefore declined 
taking the sacrament from him, and actually received it from the hands of 
another ecclesiastic of his own country, named Fernelius, who at that time was 
a reader of Swedenborg's writings, and is said to have continued to do so ever 
since, at Stockholm, where he is now living (in 1786) ; and I have been assured, 
that, on this occasion, Swedenborg expressly exhorted him^o continue steadfast in 
the truth. Mr. Mathesius is said to have become insane himself,| a short time 
after this ; and becoming thereby incapable of his function, has existed ever 
since, in that melancholy state, upon the bounty of the king of Sweden.' 

" What now are we to say of the report first invented by Mr. Mathesius the 
Lutheran divine, afterwards propagated by Mr. Wesley the Arminian divine, 
and lastly by Mr. Pike the Baptist divine, but that they each found it the easiest 
and most convenient argument to be drawn against the heavenly doctrines 
contained in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg ? When the theologians of 
former days found themselves unable to withstand the new, but powerful, doc- 
trines of divine truth delivered by the Saviour of the world, some said, ' He is a 
good man: others said, Nay; but he deceiveth the people' (John vii. 12). 'He is 



* See above p. 86. 

t See above p. 85. We repeat the extract here for the sake of the connexion. 

i See above p. 78. 



REFUTATION OF MR. WESLEY'S FALSE REPORTS. 113 

beside himself (Mark iii. 21). • And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is 
mad; why hear ye him ? But others said, these are not the words of him that 
hath a devil : can a devil open the eyes of the blind ?' (John x. 20, 21.) Now we 
know the truth of our Lord's words, when He saith, • The disciple is not above 
his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple to be as his 
master, and the servant as his lord : if they have .called the master of the house 
Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household' (Matt. x. 24, 
25). And again, ' The servant is 7iot greater than his lord. If they have perse- 
cuted me, they will also persecute you'' (John xv. 20). In all ages of the church, 
divine truth has been persecuted in the persons of those who have been its most 
strenuous asserters and advocates ; and in general according to the degree in 
which they have manifested their sincerity, integrity, and faithfulness in the dis- 
charge of their duty, in the same degree have they been subjected to the derision 
and scorn of the world. It was not therefore to be expected, that Swedenborg, 
the distinguished and devoted servant of his Lord, would escape the malevolent 
and bitter attacks of his enemies, who either through ignorance of the doctrines 
he taught, or through envy at their success, are disposed to treat the disciple in 
the same ungenerous manner as their predecessors of old had treated his Divine 
Master. But as Michael the archangel, in disputing with the devil about the 
body of Moses (the historical sense of the Word), durst not bring against him a 
railing accusation, so it is the duty of those who are engaged in the defence of 
a good cause, to imitate so illustrious an example, and to leave all judgment to 
him who cannot err." 



" There is no trace of any allusion, (says the Rev. S. Noble, in his ' Appeal ^c," 
p. 244,) to this tale of the fever and consequent delirium in any authentic source 
of information : and the Chevalier de Sandel, we have seen above,* not only de- 
clares, that Swedenborg, 'being endowed with a strength of faculties truly ex- 
traordinary, in the decline of his age, soared to the greatest heights to which 
the intellectual faculty can rise,' — for this might be the case notwithstanding 
his having had a fever and delirium ; but he asserts further,! that ' he enjoyed 
such excellent health, that he scarcely ever experienced the slightest indisposi- 
tion.' Could this general assertion have been made, if so terrible an exception 
to it had ever happened ? In short, what with the inherent inconsistencies in 
the story itself, and the virtual refutation of it by Sandel, there is enough to 
evince its utter falsehood, could no direct contradiction of it be given. But such 
direct contradiction of it, taken from the lips of Mr. Brockmer, does exist, testi- 
fied by the Rev. R. Hind marsh, who was still living to confirm it.:}: Thus the 
whole origin of the story was evidently no more than this : Swedenborg men- 
tioned freely to Brockmer the commencement of his spiritual intercourse : Brock- 
mer talked of it : and from the idle reports which thus got abroad, Mathesius, 
nearly forty years afterwards, fabricated the tale with which he imposed on Mr. 
Wesley. This fact is alone sufficient to fix the brand of imposture on the whole 
story. The charge against Swedenborg of mental derangement, is built upon 



* Page 23. t Page 36. 

^ When the first edition of the *' Appeal, 8rc" was published. See above p. 110. 



114 ' DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

circumstances alleged to have occurred forty years before the charge was 
brought forward, and which had never been heard of in the whole of the in- 
termediate period ! What more palpable mark of fabrication could exist ? 

*^ But if from the story of the fever and delirium (continues Mr. Noble), as- 
sumed as true, any should continue to argue that Swedenborg remained insane 
ever after ; with much more plausibility might it be argued, that a man who 
became positively insane, and continued the remainder of his life in that state, 
might have been partially deranged long before it was suspected : and if so, we 
could easily account for Mathesius' imagining the tale he propagated ; for that 
he went mad, is a well-authenticated fact. We are by no means prone to assume 
the distribution of divine judgments; but it really is difficult to avoid thinking 
that we behold one here. All must allow it to be a remarkable coincidence, that 
the man who first imputed insanity to Swedenborg, and was the chief cause of 
its being believed by others, should himself have experienced the deplorable 
visitation; which happened, also, soon after he gave the information to Mr. 
Wesley. The Abrege des Ouvrages d' Em. Swedenborg, which was published at 
Stockholm in 1788, states in the preface, that Mathesius had become insane, and 
was then living in that state in that city. The same is affirmed in the New Jeru- 
salem Magazine; one of the editors of which was Mr. C. B. Wadstrom, a Swedish 
gentleman of great respectability, well known for his efforts in the cause of the 
abolition of Ihe slave-trade, and who must have had ample means of knowing the 
fact. In a MS. minute, also, in my possession,* of a conversation held by Mr. 
Provo, May 2nd, 1787, with Mr. Bergstrom, master of the King's Arms (Swedish) 
Hotel, in Wellclose-square ; the latter says as follows :t ' Mr. Mathesius was an 
opponent of Swedenborg, and said that he was lunatic, &c. ; but it is remarkable 
that he went lunatic himself; which happened one day when he was in the 
Swedish church and about to preach : I was there and saw it : he has been so 
ever since, and sent back to Sweden, where he now is : this was about four 
years ago.' All the accounts agree : and thus evident it is, that into the pit 
which this unhappy man digged for another, did he fall himself." 

XX. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

THE CELEBRATED OBERLIN, 

OF THE BAN-DE-LA-ROCHE, OR STEINTHAL, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE 
SPIRITUAL WORLD. 



This testimony is recorded in the Intellectual Repository fox April, 1840. pp. 151-162, 
in a visit, which the Rev. J. H. Smithson paid to the worthy and exemplary Oberlin 
two years prior to his death. Having described certain particulars of the journey from 
Strasburg to the Ban-de-la-Roche where Oberlin lived, Mr. S. proceeds as follows : — 

* Since printed at length in the Intellectual Repository for January, 1830, and inserted 
above p. 77. 
t See above p. 78. 



TESTIMONY OF THE CELEBRATED OBERLIN. f 15 

*• On entering the house (of Oberlin) I was met by the venerable pastor, then 
in the eighty-fourth year of his age. I presented my letters of recommendation, 
and he immediately saluted me with a cordial welcome, and taking me by the 
hand, led me into his apartment. He seemed to feel a deeper interest in my 
visit, from the circumstance of my being an Englishman. The numerous be- 
nevolent societies in England had always excited his admiration at the extraor- 
dinary efforts made to benefit our race, and to distribute the Word of God in all 
languages for the healing of the nations, and a visit of one of the sons of Britain, 
who took an interest in these beneficent undertakings, seemed a peculiar treat 
to one who for nearly sixty years of his life, had devoted himself so zealously to 
the accomplishment of those objects, which the religious and philanthropic 
societies of Britain contemplate. The stature of Oberlin was tall and well-pro- 
portioned, and the weight of four score years and upwards, had scarcely caused 
his person to bend; his sight was not dim, and he appeared to enjoy the use of 
his faculties unimpaired ; but the energy that formerly actuated him, had abated 
in its vigor, like the rays of the summer's sun, when verging to the distant west. 
His countenance was very expressive, and full of that energetic appearance, 

* which is the characteristic of firmness and greatness of soul. 

" In a short time after my arrival, dinner was announced, and Oberlin, leading 
me by the hand, showed me the place at his table, which was always reserved, 
for the friend and the stranger, opposite to the seat which he occupied himself. 
The entire household -dined together: himself, his friends, and the housekeeper 
occupying the upper, and the servants, and frequently one or other of the in^ 
habitants of the more distant part of the valley, the lower end of his table. Ober- 
lin embraced this opportunity to instil many solid principles of goodness and 
rirtue into the hearts of his family, his flock, and his guests. He well knew the 
correspondence there is between feeding the body, and nourishing the mind 5 
and how the affections of the heart are, on such occasions, more open to receive 
the seeds of truth scattered by the paternal hand of the master, who is loved, and 
whose life is a continual testimony of the precepts he professes. Oberlin spoke 

.German and French with equal ease and fluency; on the frontiers, between 
Germany and France, these two languages are indispensable to the pastor, as 
the population is partly of French, and partly of German extraction. Our con- 
versation was in German. He was full of inquiries respecting many things in 
Britain. After dinner he took me to his library, a large upper room ; two sides 
of which were fitted up with shelves from the top to the bottom, and well stock- 
ed with books in several languages. The other two sides were furnished with 
maps, diagrams, plates, designs, and models, of various kinds, by which he in- 
structed the members of his flock in the useful arts of life, such as architecture, 

I in its most simple application, the construction of bridges, of agricultural imple- 

! ments, &c. In all these useful arts and sciences he had, from the commencement 
of his ministry in Steinthal instructed his people, and had brought them, by a 
superior system of agriculture, by forming roads across the most accessible parts 
of the mountains, and by introducing the manufacture of some of the most useful 
articles of domestic and agricultural economy, to a state of comfort and com- 
parative independence, although inhabiting the wildest and most ungenial dis- 
tricts of France, where the winter is said to be as cold as in the latitude of St. 
Petersburg, and where only three months of fine, warm, genial weather can be 



118 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

expected. The fact that Oberlin rendered this dreary solitude, in which a few- 
wild, barbarous hordes of men barely existed, a comparative garden, abounding 
with all the necessaries of life, and that he trained his flock to the knowledge 
and practice of evangelical truth and virtue, and opened their minds to a per- 
ception of heavenly realities, through the knowledge contained in Swedenborg's 
work On Heaven and Hell, is the cause of his wide-spread celebrity among the 
continental nations of Europe. This would be the proper place, if time and 
space permitted, to describe some of those acts of eminent usefulness, which 
Oberlin performed in agriculture and the arts, which were not only so beneficial 
to his immediate vicinity, but also to his country at large. His country acknow- 
ledged his services, and honored his name, by presenting him with a gold 
medal. 

" Having received a few explanations from Oberlin respecting the diagrams, 
models, &c., which I observed in his library, 1 prepared myself to converse with 
him on things of a more exalted character — on his manner of perceiving the 
truths of the Word, as well as his conceptions respecting the realities of heaven, 
and the spiritual state of man in general. I at once asked him whether he had 
read any of the works of Swedenborg .' Without replying, he immediately 
reached a book, and clapping his hand upon it, expressive of great satisfaction, 
told me, that he had had this treasure many years in his library, and that he 
knew from his own experience that everything related in it was true. This 
treasure was Swedenborg's work On Heaven and Hell. As I had lately become 
acquainted with the theological writings of the enlightened Swedenborg, and as 
Oberlin was almost the only person I had met with who had any knowledge of 
those writings, T was, of course, highly delighted to meet with a man, whose 
name was universally honored, and whose life and character were considered as 
a bright example of every Christian virtue. The great weight which accompa- 
nied the name of this good man, and the approving declaration he had already 
made respecting one of the most important works of Swedenborg, materially 
strengthened my convictions of the truth of his claims to universal attention. I 
accordingly felt the deepest interest in conversing with Oberlin on the the sub- 
ject of Swedenborg's theology, and the amazing spiritual intelligence displayed 
in his writings, and inquired how it had happened, that he had arrived at con- 
victions so solid respecting the facts and truths contained in the work On Heav- 
en and Hell. He replied, that when he first came to reside as a pastor among the 
inhabitants of Steinthal, they had many superstitious notions respecting the prox- 
imity of the spiritual world, and of the appearance of various objects and phe- 
nomena in that world'which, from time to time, were seen by some of the peo- 
ple belonging to his flock. For instance, it was not unusual for a ])erson who 
had died to appear to some individual in the valley. This gift of second sight, 
or the opening of the spiritual sight, to see objects in a spiritual state of exist- 
ence, was, however, confined to a- few persons, and continued but a short 
period, and at different intervals, of time. The report of every new occurrence 
of this kind was brought to Oberlin, who at length became so much annoyed, 
that he was resolved to put down this species of superstition, as he called it, 
from the pulpit, and exerted himself for a considerable time to this end, but with 
little or no desirable effect. Cases became more numerous, and the circum- 
stances so striking as even to stagger the scepticism of Oberlin himself. About 



TESTIMONY OF THE CELEBRATED OBERLIN. 117 

this time, being on a visit at Strasburg, he met with the work On Heaven and Hell, 
which a friend* recommended him to peruse. This work, as he informed me, 
gave him a full and satisfactory explanation of the extraordinary cases occur- 
ring in his valley, and which he himself was, at length, from evidences which 
could not be doubted, constrained to admit. The satisfactory solution of these 
extraordinary cases afforded great pleasure to his mind, and he read the * treas- 
ure,' as he called it, very attentively, and with increasing delight. He nc longer 
doubted in the nearness of the spiritual world ; yea, he believed that man, by 
virtue of his better part — his immortal mind — is already an inhabitant of the 
spiritual world, in which, after the death of the material body, he is to continue 
his existence for ever. He plainly saw from the correspondent relation existing 
between the two worlds, that -when it pleased the Lord, man might easily be 
placed, by opening his spiritual senses, in open communication with the world 
of spirits. This, he observed, was frequently the case with the seers mentioned 
in the Old Testament ; and why might it not be so now, if the divine Providence 
saw fit, in order to instruct mankind more fully in respect to their relation to a 
spiritual state of existence, and to replenish their minds with more acurate and 
copious views respecting heaven, the final home of the good, and hell, the final 
abode of the wicked. 

" This conversation of Oberlin's seemed highly reasonable and delightful ; and 
I inquired further, by what means he had arrived at convictions so solid respect- 
ing the truth of Swedenborg's statements and descriptions concerning the world 
of spirits, and heaven and hell. He replied, that he himself had had ocular and 
demonstrative experience respecting these important subjects, and that, strange 
to say, he had come into that state of open communion with the world of spirits, 
which he had formerly considered as a rank species of superstition, and which 
he had endeavored to extirpate from the valley. He observed, that the inhabi- 
tants of that mountainous district had always been notorious for this peculiar 
kind of spiritual experience, and in this respect much resembled the highlanders 
of Scotland, of whom he had heard and read similar accounts. He, therefore, 
could readily understand Swedenborg's case, w^ho, for most useful and salutary 
purposes, was mercifully permitted to enjoy an open intercourse with the world 
of spirits, during so many years of his life, in order to instruct mankind in respect 
to subjects of the greatest moment to wisdom and happiness, and of which they 
are so deplorably ignorant : with regard to himself, however, he had only had 

* I think I have heard, that this friend was the celebrated T)r. Jung-Stilliiig, with 
whom Oberlin was very intimate. He was also intimate with the celebrated Lavater, 
of Zurich, with whom, he told me, be corresponded ; and as Lavater is known, from 
his letters to Swedenborg (see below pp. 121, 122,) to have been a great admirer 
of his writings, he, no doubt, often mentioned them to Oberlin. I have also- under- 
stood, that these three distinguished men were fellow-students. They all felt a deep 
interest in the writings of Swedenborg, and their exemplary Christian character and 
intelligence have exercised very considerable influence over great parts of Germany and 
Switzerland, where their names will be held in everlastin<g remembrance. In respect ta 
Stilling, see above pp. 104, 105. Here I would observe in respect to Stilling, that l)e did 
not adopt the theological doctrines of Swedenborg, which renders his testmiony given 
above so much the more impartial. It is evident, howeverythat in bis practical writings 
he infused many of Swedenborg's sentiments into those works which have rendered Stil- 
ling's name respected and revered among the pious of Germany. See, in particular, his 
" Heimweh," or Desire for Heaven ; and his *' Scenen aui dem GeUterreiche" or Scenes 
from the World of Spirits. 



118 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORO. 

glimpses, as it were, into the spiritual world, which, continued only for short 
periods, and at distant intervals ; and if he had not read Swedenborg's work, he 
could not rationally and satisfactorily have explained to himself the various 
objects and phenomena he had beheld. 

"From this time, he observed, he ceased to manifest his opposition against 
the * superstition' in question, and endeavored, when anything occurred, to turn 
it to the instruction and edification of his people. He carefully wrote down 
every occurrence, and drew from it some salutary instruction, which either 
warned his flock against evil, or encouraged them in goodness and virtue. He 
said that he had a large pile of papers, which he had written on this kind of 
spiritual phenomena, containing the facts, with his own reflections upon them. 
One of these occurrences! can here relate. In the year 1806, a tremendous con- 
vulsion of nature occurred in Switzerland, which deeply moved the whole of 
Europe : it was the fall of the Rossberg, a great mountain, which suddenly fell, 
and buried several villages under its ruins. This catastrophe excited the greatest 
consternation throughout the whole surrounding country, and deeply affected 
Oberlin and the people of Steinthal. As it was customary in cases of deep -ex- 
citement for some person or other in the valley to become clairvoyant, that is, 
jto have their spiritual vision opened ; so in this case, several individuals became 
clairvoyant, and the unfortunate people who had been destroyed by the moun- 
tain, were seen in the world of spirits. They appeared, said Oberlin, in places 
very similar to those they had left in the natural world, and associated together, 
as they had been accustomed to do, but by degrees they separated from each 
other, and were associated according to their moral worth. This account, Ober- 
lin observed, was in agreement with what Swedenborg says respecting the state 
of man immediately after his departure from this world ; and likewise respect- 
ing what he states in regard to the manner in which spirits associate together, 
or constitute societies ; for all are there arranged according • to their moral 
worth,' — those who are good, and, in similar affections, constitute heavenly 
societies, and those who are evil, and in similar malignant dispositions, formin* 
fernal societies. 

" So <5onvinced was Oberlin of the salutary importance of teaching his flock 
respecting heaven and Jiell, and the correspondent relation which man sustains 
to the spiritual world, that he formed a chart, or map, representing heaven, 
which he hung up in his church. This celestial diagram, as it was called, was 
taken from Solomon's temple, which, in all respects corresponded to heaven. 
These correspondences Oberlin had derived from Swedenborg, and he pointed 
out to his flock, that according to their humility, piety, fidelity, and their love of 
being useful to each other, would be their elevation in the Lord's kingdom, 
either to the first, second, or third heaven. His flock were extremely delighted 
to hear his remarks concerning heaven ; and the manner in which he explained 
to them how the love of the Lord above all things, and the love of our neighbor 
even better than ourselves, constitutes the life and soul of the heavenly king- 
dom, served, no doubt, to kindle that celestial fire of mutual love amongst his 
people, which made them • a bright and shining light' to all around them. For 
the numerous instances of remarkable self-denial, of benevolence to the orphan, 
widow, and stranger ; of liberal contributions from their scanty means to pro- 
cure Bibles for those in the surrounding districts, that did not possess the Word 



TESTIMONY OF THE CELEBRATED OBERLIN. 119 

of God, and to purchase articles of clothing, and implements of use for those 
who were destitute, and not able to work for the want of necessary means : 
these facts, I repeat, when considered in connexion with the general exemption 
from vice and crime, were striking proofs of something hke that genuine spirit 
of Christianity, which has seldom been witnessed upon earth, but which, as the 
New Jerusalem Church advances, will not be so great a stranger amongst men. 
" From seeing, as explained by Swedenborg, that the Lord's kingdom is a 
kingdom of uses, Oberlin resolved all the exertions and operations of his life 
into one element — use. He taught his people, that to be useful, and to shun all 
evil as sin against the Lord, in being useful, is the truly heavenly life. On this 
account, when his flock assembled in the church on the week-day, to hear from 
their beloved pastor some instructive and edifying discourse, the females brought 
with them their knifting, needlework, and platting, and thus worked with their 
hands, whilst their minds were being instructed in various kinds of useful know- 
ledge. His discourse on some week-day evening was not exclusively theologi- 
cal and religious, although religion was blended with everything he said ; but 
it frequently conveyed some eminently practical ideas on the various useful arts 
of common life. These useful ideas on the concerns of ordinary life were 
always connected with something heavenly, and ascribed to the goodness of 
our heavenly Father; in this manner Oberlin connected the concerns of earth 
with the realities of heaven, and brought down a celestial influence into the 
common duties of life. 

" The day after my arrival was the Sabbath, and I anticipated much pleasure 
in hearing the venerable pastor address his flock. He preached in French ; his 
discourse was characterised by simplicity and warmth. He almost invariably 
called Jesus his heavenly Father, which struck many as a peculiarity not com- 
mon with Christians in general, but I well knew how he had contracted this habit 
of addressmg the object of his supreme love and worship. From the work On 
Heaven and Hell, he had clearly seen, that no other is acknowledged throughout 
heaven as the Divine Father than the Lord Jesus Christ alone, for ' he that seeth 
him seeth the Father.' The church was full, and humility and devotion seemed 
impressed upon every countenance. He addressed them like a father addressing 
his children, and often called them his chers enfants, — his beloved children. He 
said he had baptized nearly all of them, and, as infants, had taken them in his 
arms ; and they, when the service was over, assembled around him, and called 
him papa, inquiring after the health of himself and his family. They also testi- 
fied their regard and their gratitude by sending him various presents— the first 
flowers of the spring, the first vegetables and fruits of the garden, were present- 
ed to the beloved pastor, thus reciprocating the sweetest affections of the mind 
by external emblems of gratitude and love. How delightful, 1 thought, it is to 
be a pastor, when this sweet spirit of reciprocation exists ! where the minister, 
in his anxiety and labor to perform the arduous duties of his ofiice, is soothed 
and strengthened, not only by the consciousness, depending on divine mercy 
and assistance, of having endeavored to do what he could for the instruction and 
salvation of his flock, but by the sweet reciprocation of acknowledgment and 
afiection. 

" I afterwards was eager to embrace the opportunity of enjoymg some con- 
versation with Oberlin on the spiritual sense of the Word. But in this matter 



120 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

I was disappointed : he acknowledged that the Word has a spiritual sense ; 
but his knowledge of it seemed scanty and obscure. He told rne, he regretted 
that he had never been able to procure Swedenborg's works, in which the 
Word is explained as to its spiritual sense, these works not having been trans- 
lated either into French or German, and the Latin copies being so scarce, that 
he could never procure them. The works of Swedenborg which he possess- 
ed, were the Heaven and Hell, Divine Love and Wisdom, Divine Providence, and, if I 
mistake not, a German translation of the Earths in the Universe. 

" The different biographers of Oberlin have carefully concealed his predilection 
for the writings of Swedenborg ; they all agree, however, that he had peculiar 
views concerning heaven and hell and the human soul. And M. Morel, who 
has recently written memoirs of Oberlin, says, ' Oberlin had much originality in 
his conceptions, and his most singular ideas bore the impress of a great soul: 
he attached an emblematical sense to colors. His ardent imagination, nourished 
by the mystical works of Swedenborg, delighted to bound over the threshold of 
the tomb, and to expatiate in the mysterious world which awaits the soul, when 
separated from its earthly bonds."* 



PART III. 

lEnEES AND DOCUMENTS EELATIVE TO SWEDENBORG' 
GENERAL CLAIMS. 



XXI. 

LETTERS 

TROM 

THE CELEBRATED J. C. LAVATER,t 

OF ZURICH, 

TESTIFYING HIS ADMIRATION OF SWEDENBORG^S WRITINGS. 



It is not known (says Dr. Tafel), whether Swedenborg wrote in reply to Lavater, or 
hot ; it is very probable that) as these letters contain nothing but inquiries arising from a 
trifling curiosity, he did not reply, but left him, by continuing to read his (Swedenborg's) 
writings, to form his own judgment. That Lavater continued to be a diligent readei? 
of the writings of Swedenborg, is evident from certain treatises which he wrote On 
the Lord, On Redemption, and The Atonement, which are written in the strictest agree- 
ment with Swedenborg's doctrines on those subjects. 

* See La Nouvelle Jerusalem, Deux. Annee, 233. 

t ^ee New Jerusalem Magazine for 1790, pp. 179 and 245, where two letters from 
Lavater the celebrated author of the " Treatise on Physiognomy, fyc," are inserted ; the 
editors say that the orignal I<atin letters were then in their possession. 



LETTERS FROM THE CELEBRA.TED LAVATER. 121 

LETTER T. 

" Most reverend and excellent man, 

" I doubt not but you are often troubled with letters from foreigners with 
whom you are unacquainted, and as you are much engaged in meditation, busi- 
ness, travels, and the company of persons of renown, you will probably con- 
sider the present application from an unknown Swiss as trifling and imperti- 
nent: yet knowing that so great a man was my contemporary, I could not help 
inquiring of him a few things which seemed to me to be of the greatest import- 
ance, as I know no person in the world but yourself (who have given proofs of 
an extrnordinary and almost divine knowledge), capable of resolving my ques- 
tions, I shall therefore take the liberty of proposing them, and trust you will 
condescend to satisfy me therein as soon as possible. 

•' I. I have been engaged these three years with heart and soul in writing a 
poem on the future happiness of Christians, and have lately written several 
letters particularly to Zimmerman, the present celebrated physician to the king 
of England, an Hanoverian, and my intimate friend, to the end that I might col- 
lect the opinions of the wise and learned, before I should publish the poem itself. 
I most fervently v/ish to have your opinion also, which would be of great use to 
me ; but as I do not know whether you are conversant with the German 
language, I would willingly send you a copy, or, if you please, translate the 
principal parts into Latin. 

" n. I have a long time been convinced from the Holy Writings and my own 
particular experience, that God frequently favors faithful and ardent prayers in 
such a manner, that on acciount of them not only wonderful fhings hav^e been 
done, but even real miracles effected. I am now writing a dissertation on that 
subject, and therefore beg to know your opinion. You may probably not doubt 
that God and Christ still work miracles for the sake of the faithful, who are much 
united to him ; perhaps some certain instances, which are beyond doubt, may 
have come to your knowledge. Is it true that a very pious girl at Stockholm, 
of the name of Catharine Fagerberg, has, when asked, by m.eans of prayer, and 
an extraordinary faith, quickly cured many persons otherwise incurable .' Could 
you furnish me with certain and authentic proofs of the truth thereof.' 

" III. I have heard and read much of your familiar conversation with the 
spirits of the deceased ; may I be permitted, most respected man, to propose to 
you some questions, from a mind that is very sincere and filled with respect 
towards you, by the solution of which I may be convinced concerning these 
almost incredible reports. 

•' 1. Felix Hess, a friend of mine, died March 3, 1768, — whether he will ap- 
pear to me, while I am living, and when, and in what manner.' — whether he 
will reveal anything to me respecting the happiness of those in heaven, or con- 
cerning my ecclesiastical destination on earth .' (I fervently desired him before 
his death to comply with m.y request if possible.) 

" 2. Henry Hess, brother to the deceased, my very good friend, — whether, and 
when, he will be convinced of that power of faith and prayer which I teach, 
and of which he still doubts ? — and which of the inhabitants of Zurich, who are 
yet in a doubtful state, will be convinced .' 

" 3. Shall I ever be so happy as to converse with angels or spirits of the de- 
9 



122 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

ceased without any false fanaticism, and without disobedience against the com- 
mandmitil of God, not to interrogate the dead ; and by what manner of life, or 
by what virtues, I could arrive at so high a privilege? 

" 4. Whether the dream I had June 9, this year, proceeded from Felix Hess ? 

" Be not angry, thou most excellent and learned man, with a very studious 
disciple oftrath, who will neither be rashly credulous, nor a disbeliever, but has 
an open breast, ready to receive from his inmost soul whatever truth beams 
forth. Farewell ; do not suffer me long to wait in vain for an answer. May 
God and Christ, to whom we belong, whether living or dead, be with you. 

"John Caspar Lavater. 
" Zurich, Switzerland, Aug. 24, 1768." 



LETTER II. 

•' Most noble, venerable, and beloved 
in Christ our Lord, 

" I have taken the liberty of writing to you a second time, as it is likely yo^ 
may not have received my other letter on account of your travels ; but I have 
last learnt by what means this will probably reach you. 

" I revere the wonderful gifts thou hast received of our God. I revere th( 
wisdom which shines forth from thy writings, and, therefore, cannot but seek! 
the friendship of so great and excellent a man now living. If it is true what is 
reported, God will show to thee how much I seek, to converse with thee in the 
simplicity of my mind. I am a young man not yet thirty years old, minister of 
the gospel : I am and shall be employed in the cause of Christ as long as I live. 
I have written something on the happiness of the future life. Oh! if I could 
exchange letters with thee on this subject, or rather converse ! I add a writing : 
thou shalt know my soul. One thing I beg of thee, thou divinely inspired man ! 
I beseech thee by the Lord not to refuse me, 

" In the month of March, 1768, Felix Hess, my best friend died, a youth of 
Zurich, twenty-four years of age, an upright man, of a noble mind, striving for a 
Christian spirit, but not yet clothed with Christ. Tell me, pray, what he does ; 
paint to me his figure, state, &c. in such words, that I may know that God in 
truth is in thee. I send also a cipher writing, which thou wilt understand if it 
is true what is reported of thee : I request it may not be shown to any person. 

" I am thy brother in Christ. Answer very soon a sincere brother : answer 
the letter I have sent, and in such a manner, that I may see what I am beUev- 
ing upon the testimony of others. Christ be with us, to whom we belong, living 
or dead. 

•'John Caspar Lavater. 

♦' Zurich, Switzerland, Sept. 24, 1769." 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A BEYER. 123 

XXII. 
LETTERS 

FROM 

SWEDENBORG TO DR. BEYER,* 

GREEK PROFESSOR, AND ASSESSOR IN THE CONSISTORY OF GOTTENBURG, 

ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS. 



This gentleman, in the year 1766,t became one of Swedenborg's mostintimate/riends, 
and one of the most active promoters of his sentiments. This drew upon him a severe 
persecution from the Consistory at Gottenburg. The matter was carried before the 
supreme government, when, in compliance with an order from the king, Dr. Beyer 
presented to his majesty, Jan. 2, 1770, a declaration of his sentiments in regard to the 
doctrines of Swedenborg.:}: Towards the close, the amiable and learned author expresses 
himself thus; "In obedience to your majesty's most gracious command, that I should 
deliver a full and positive declaration respecting the writings of Swedenborg, I do 
acknowledge it to be my duty to declare, in all humble confidence, that so far as I 
have proceeded in the study of them, and according to such gifts for investigation and 
judgment as I possess, I have found in them nothing but what closely coincides with the 
words of the Lord himself; and they shine with a light truly divine." The following 
are certain letters which Swedenborg wrote to this learned and pious individual. 



LETTER I. 

To Dr. Beyer. 



" I have now at length arrived at the end of the Apocalypsis, and send you, Sir, 
eight copies thereof, two bound, and six in sheets, which you will please to dis- 
pose of in the following manner : one copy for yourself, one for the bishop, one 
for the dean, one for Dr. Rosen, one for the mayor (Mr. Patterson), and one for 
the library ; the other two you may lend out to your friends. At the conclusion 
of every chapter there are memorable relations separated from the text by asterisks, 
which you will please to read over first, whereby a fundamental knowledge 
will be acquired of the miserable state to which the reformed churches are re- 
duced by the doctrine of faith alone. I am now going from this place for Eng- 
land, where some disturbance has most likely arisen, as the bishops of England 
are strongly pointed out in the memcrable relations, but necessity required it. — I 
remain, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, April 8, 1766." 

* See JVeio Jerusalem, Magazine, 1790, p. 30, where the ibllowing letters are said to be 
faithfully translated from the original by J. Strand. 

t We have seen above p. 75, the way in which Dr. Beyer first became acquainted 
with Swedenborg and his writings. 

X It may be seen in the Intellectual Repository, vol. i. (first series,) p. 113 : it has also 
been since published in the form of a small tract : for it contains a masterly vindication 
of the sentiments selected by the Consistory for condemnation. This document v/e 
■shall adduce below. 



124 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

LETTER II, 

To Dr. Beyer. 

" With regard to the writings of St. Paul, and the other apostles, I have not 
given them a place in my Arcana Calestia, because they are dogmatic writings 
merely, and not written in the style of the Word, as are those of the prophets, of 
David, of the Evangelists, and Revelation of St. John,* 

"The style of the Word consists throughout in correspondences, and thence 
effects an immediate communication with heaven ; but the style of these dog- 
matic writings is quite different, having, indeed, communication with heaven, 
but only mediate or indirectly. 

" The reason why the apostles wrote in this style, was, that the New Chris- 
tian Church was then to begin through them ; consequently, the same style as 
is used in the Word v^ould not have been proper for such doctrinal tenets, which 
required plain and simple language, suited to the capacities of all readers, 

" Nevertheless, the writings of the apostles are very good books for the church, 
inasmuch as they insist on the doctrine of charity and faith thence derived as 
strongly as the Lord Himself hath done in the Gospels, and in the Revelation of 
St. John, as will appear evidently to any one who studies these writings with 
attention. 

'■' In the Apocalypse Revealed, No. 417, I have proved, that the words of Paul, in 
Rom. iii. 28, are quite misunderstood ; and thus the doctrine of justification by 
faith alone, which at present constitutes the theology of the reformed churches, 
is built on an entirely false foundation. — I remain, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Amsterdam, April 15, 1766." 



LETTER III. 

To Dr. Beyer. 



'* I arrived here on the 8th of this month. The voyage from England hither 
was made in eight days. The wind was favorable, but attended with a violent 
storm, which occasioned so short a passage, I have since received yours of the 
17th September, and am glad to find yourself and my other friends are well at 
Gottenbarg, to all of whom you will please to present my compliments, 

" I wish much blessing to the intended publication of the Library of Sermons^] 
and send you herewith my subscription for the same, I presume you will use 
all necessary precaution in this work, because the time is not yet arrived, that 
the essentials of the New Church can be so received ; the clergy, who have so 
much confirmed themselves in their tenets at the universities, find it difficult to 
be convinced : for all confirmations, in things pertaining to theology, are, as it 
were, glued fast in the brains, and can with difficulty be removed ; and, whilst 
they remain, genuine truths can find no place. Besides, the new heaven of Chris- 
tians, from whence the New Jerusalem from the Lord will descend (Rev, xxi, 12). is not 
yet perfectly settled. 

* See the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scripture, No. 11 3,' 
t The title of a work written by Dr, Beyer. 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. 

"It is now generally thought here at Stockhohn, that faith and charity must 
advance together, and that the one cannot exist without the other, by reason that 
good works are the fruits of faith, and show themselves in a state of justification (yet 
very few of the Lutherans think beyond this); although the learned have not 
yet discovered any connexion between faith and goo^Z works,- for which reason 
they assert good works to be only things of a moral and civil nature, and so far good, 
but not available unto salvation, &c. They are also in the right, because from 
such a faith no other works can be derived ; the case is different as to faith in 
Jesus Christ. 

" With respect to the Divine Humanity of the Lord it is not contrary to the For- 
mula Concordice, where we are taught, that ' in Christ God is Man, and Man is God, 
and the assertion of Paul is confirmed, that in Christ all the fullness of the Godhead 
dwelleth bodily,' &c. Of the writings of Behmen I cannot judge, as I have never 
ead them. — I remain, &c., 

•' Emanuel Swedenborg. 
«' Stockholm, Sept. 25, 1766." 



LETTER IV. 

To Dr. Beyer. 



" By your friend. Sir, I have been asked several questions, to which be pleased 
to receive the foUowing as an answer : — 

"I. My opinion concerning the writings of Behmen andL ? — Answer. I have 

never read them, as I was prohibited reading dogmatic and systematic theology, 
before heaven was opened to me, by reason, that, unfounded opinions and in- 
ventions might thereby easily have insinuated themselves, which with difficulty 
could afterwards have been extirpated, wherefore, when heaven was opened to 
me, it was necessary first to learn the Hebrew language, as well as the corres- 
pondences of which the whole Bible is composed, which led me to read the 
Word of God over many times ; and inasmuch as the Word of God is the source, 
whence all theology must be derived, 1 was thereby enabled to receive instruc- 
tions from the Lord, who is the Word, 

" II. How soon the New Church is to be expected ? — Answer. The Lord is preparing 
at this time a new heaven of such as believe in Him, and acknowledge Him 
to be the true God of heaven and earth, and also look to Him in their lives, 
which is to shun evil and do good ; because from that heaven shall the New 
Jerusalem, mentioned in Rev. xxi. 2, descend. I daily see spirits and anoels, 
from ten to twenty thousand, descending and ascending, who are set in order. 
By degrees as that heaven is formed, the New Church likewise begins and in- 
creases. The universities in Christendom are now first instructed, from whence 
will come ministers; because the new heaven has no influence over the old 
clergy, who conceive themselves to be too well skilled in the doctrine of justifi- 
cation by faith alone. 

" III. Respecting the promised treatise concernirig infinity, omnipotence, and omni- 
presence ?— Answer. There are many things interspersed in the Angelic Wisdom 
concerning Divine Providence, on these subjects, at No. 46-51, and 157 ; also in the 
treatise On Angelic Wisdom concerning Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, No. 4, 17 



126 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

19, 24, 44, 69, 72, 76, 106, 156, 318 ; and in the Apocalypse Revealed, No. 961, and 
these will be still further treated on in The Mysteries of Angelic Wisdom concerning'' 
Conjugial Love ; but forasmuch as to write a separate treatise on these divine 
attributes, without the assistance of something to support them, would occasion 
too high an elevation of the thoughts, I have therefore treated on these subjects 
in a series with other things which fall within the understanding. 

" I have with pleasure perused your new Essay on the Gospels;* concerning the 
first advent, there are fine interpretations. Here I shall mention the signification 
of a manger, of the baptism of John, and of Elias. A manger signifies instructioti 
from the Word, because mules and horses signify the understanding of the Word 
(See Apocalypse Revealed, No, 298) ; and in a manger is their nutrition ; that there 
was no room in the inn, signifies, that there was no place of instruction in Jeru- 
salem ; wherefore it is said to the shepherds, who signify the church to come, 
" This shall he the sign unto you ; ye shall find the babe lying in a manger'' (Luke ii. 
12). The baptism of John prepared the heavens, that the Jewish people might 
subsist when God Himself should appear among them ; and John as well as 
Elias, who was the chief of the prophets, signifies, all the prophecies in the Old 
Testament concerning the Lord and His advent. 

" Since here (in Stockholm), they now begin to think more of charity than be- 
fore, and to be persuaded that faith and charity cannot be separated, therefore 
faith alone begins also to be called the Moravian faith. — I remain, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Stockholm, Feb., 1767." 



I 



LETTER V. 

To Dr. Beyer. 

" I had the pleasure of receiving yours, Sir, of the 23d of November, 1768. 
The reason why I did not answer it, was, that I would postpone it until a little 
work was published, entitled, A brief Exposition of the Doctrine of the New Church, 
signified in the Revelations by the New Jerusalem, in which work are fully shown 
the errors of the hitherto conceived doctrine, of justification by faith alone, and the 
imputation of the rigftteousness, or merits, of Jesus Christ. This treatise I have sent 
to all the clergy throughout Holland, and I intend to convey it to the most emi- 
nent in Germany. 1 have been informed that they have attentively perused it, 
and that some of them have already discovered the truth, and that others do not 
know which way to turn themselves ; for wiiat is written therein, is perfectly 
convincing that the doctrine above-mentioned is the cause that no true theology 
now exists in Christendom. I intend sending you, by the first ship, twelve 
copies of this work, which you will please to dispose of in the following man- 
ner : one copy to the bishop, one to the dean, and the rest, except your own, to 
the professors of theology at the colleges, and the clergymen in the city, since 
110 one can more rightly judge of the same, than he who has fundamentally received 
the mysteries of justification. After this little work is perused, be pleased, kindly, 

* This excellent work of Dr. Beyer, consists of homilies or discourses for every Sunday 
throughout the year, written on the principles of the New Church ; and in Sweden, by 
those who receive the doctrine, is greatly esteemed ; although the author was much per- I 
secuted on that account, and the book afterwards prohibited. 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. 127 

to request the dean to declare his opinion thereof in the Consistory. All those 
that can, and are willing to see truth, will accede. 

•' I am now much inquired of, respecting the New Church, when it will take 
place .' — to which I answer : by degrees, as the doctrine of justification and im- 
putation is extirpated; which probably may be effected by this work. It is 
known, that the Christian Church did not take place immediately after the as- 
cension of Christ, but increased successively, Avhich is also understood by these 
words in the Revelations : ' And the woman flew into the desert, into her place, where 
she is nourished a time, times, and half a time, from the face of the serpenV (xii. 14). 
The serpent or dragon, is that doctrine. 

" In about a month I am going from hence to Paris, and that with a design 
which beforehand must not be made pubhc. 

" With regard to the visions of several mentioned in your letter, they are no- 
thing but phantastic visions. — With my respectful compliments to the bishop, &c., 
I remain, &c., 

"Emanuel Swedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, March 15, 1769." 



LETTER VI. 

To Dr. Beyer. 

** I arrived at Stockholm the beginning of this month, and was kindly received 
by all classes of people, and instantly invited by their Royal Highnesses the he- 
reditary prince and his sister, with both of whom I had a long conversation. I 
also dined with several of the senators, and conversed with the first members of 
the Diet, and with the bishops here present, who all behaved very kindly and 
affably to me, except bishop Filenius. On being informed that my copies of the 
work, De Amore Conjugiali, were stopped at Norkj oping, I inquired of the bish- 
ops, Enander from Abo, of Benzelstierna from Westeras,- of Bishop Lutkeman, 
and of bishop Lamberg, how matters stood respecting my writings, who all as- 
sured me, that they knew no other but that the books were taken care of, lest 
any part of them should be lost before my return home ; but that bishop File- 
nius had made a representation of the matter to the clergy in the Diet, who had 
gi ven him no answer, and much less consented to any confiscation ; and that 
his motion was not accepted, or minuted down in the proceedings of the Diet ; 
and consequently that none of the clerical order in the Diet bore any part in it, 
except bishop Filenius, with whom I had some dispute, as he insisted on their 
being revised, before they were delivered; and he will not hear mentioned, that 
the revisal of this book, which is not theological, but chiefly moral, is unneces- 
sary, and consequently absurd. Such a mode of proceeding would prepare the 
way for a ' dark age ' in Sweden. Nevertheless, this behavior of the bishop 
cannot affect me in the least, as I have brought over thirty-eight copies of this 
work with me. and had sent over five of them before ; the half of which num- 
ber I have delivered and sent to the bishops, to the different orders of the Diet, to 
the senators, and to the Royal Family, and when the rest in like manner are 
distributed, there will be more than sufRcientfor Stockholm. I think of sending 
those that are stopped at Norkjoping, abroad, where they are much desired. 



128 BOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

"I send herewith a Httle treatise, printed in London, entitled, De Comwerao 
Animal et Corporis, which has been sent to the societies and universities in Eng- 
land and France. Please to peruse the latter part of it: most likely it is also 
translated into English. I gave only to bishop Benzelstierna that little treatise, 
entitled, A Brief Exposition of the Doctrine of the Netu Church, enjoining him at the 
same time, in the strictest manner, to take care not to let it pass into other peo- 
ple's hands, because there are but very few in Sweden, whose miderstandings 
are receptive of true theology, and therefore the light that is given from the 
Word of God, is not received by them. As, for instance, what is said in Rom. 
iii. 28, and in Gal. ii. 16, where an imputative faith of the merits of Christ is not 
meant, but real faith in Jesus, which is a faith from Him and in Him. Neither 
are the works of the lav/ of the Decalogue meant in those places, but the works- 
of the Mosaic law, proper to the Jews. Neither is Rom. iv. to be understood of 
the imputation of the present church, &c., nor will they be enlightened by such).| 
Scripture texts as concern the Son of God ; that by the Son of God is not to be un-^- 
derstood any Son of God from eternity, but the Son of God conceived in time from.. 
Jehovah God, and born of the Virgin Mary, according to the very words them- i 
selves, in Luke i. 32-35 ; Matt. iii. 17 ; xvii. 5 ; John xx. 31 ; 1st Epistle of John 
V. 20, 21, and other places. This is Lkewise agreeable to the Apostolic Creed, 
where no other Son of God is mentioned, and consequently the primitive church 
knew of no other. 

" That a Son of God from eternity was mserted in the Nicene and Athanasian 
Creeds, arose from this, that they found no other way to refute and banish the 
Arian errors. (See the Apostolic Creed.) I therefore adhere to the Apostolic '] 
Church. 

*' To call on God the Saviour, can in nowise be denied throughout Christendom, 
and still less by the Lutherans who abide by the Augustine confession, p. 19;fj 
and also in the Apology, p. 226 ; and, moreover, that in Christ Man is God, and' 
God is Man; as also many other particulars already mentioned. The Formula 
Concordice likewise explains a Divine Trinity in those that are renewed through >| 
faith, p. 695, Apol. p. 130; but which in reality is not a true explication of thei 
Divine Trinity in God the Saviour, as shall be fully demonstrated in that work, i\ 
which I intend laying before the public within the space of two years. In the 
meantime, the Brief Exposition, as a forerunner of it, will prepare the way for 
its reception. This treatise has been dispersed throughout Christendom, Swe- 
den excepted, and that for this reason : because true divinity exists there only ' 
in its wintry state; and, in general, towards the North Pole, there is a greater 
length of spiritual night than in the southern parts; and therefore, those who 
stand ill that darkness may be supposed to kick and stumble more than others 
against everything in the New Church, which is the produce of an unprejudiced 
reason and understandhig; yet, at the same time, we are to admit of some 
exceptions to his observation in the ecclesiastical order. I apply to myself 
what our Saviour says to His disciples. Matt. x. 16. 

" The remarkable particulars related concerning your wife, in her dying hours, 
were wrought through the impression of two clergymen, who so directed and 
employed her thoughts in conversation, as to effect a conjunction with such 
spirits as she then spoke of. In the hour of death, it happens at times, to some 
people, that they are in a state of the spirit. The spirits, who first spoke through 
her, were of the dragon's society, that were cast out of heaven, agreeably to the 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. 129 

prediction in the Revelations, xii. They are thence become so filled with enmi- 
ty and hatred towards our Saviour, and, consequently, towards His holy Word, 
and all that belongs to ihe New Church, that they cannot even bear to hear the 
name of Christ mentioned. When the sphere of the Lord, proceeding from the 
heavens, lights on them, they become as it were mad, and in a terrible rnge ; and 
directly seek to hide themselves in holes and caverns, as spoken of in the Reve- 
lations vi. 16. Your deceased wife was with me yesterday, and informed me 
of a variety of things concerning what she thought, and what she had spoken 
to you her husband, and to the clergymen, the seducers. Were I at this time 
near you, I could relate a number of things on this head, which will not admit 
of being sent in writing. — I remain, &c., 

•' Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Stockholm, October 30, 1769." 

" P. S. This letter may be shown to others, and also copied or printed, if 
deemed necessary. Two honorable friends in London have sent me an invita- 
tion there, and 1 have almost resolved on going thither the ensuing spring. 

" I have been told, that in Gottenbnrg a letter has been printed, which men- 
tions, that I was ordered in Paris to depart from that city, which is a direct false- 
hood : Count Creutz, our envoy in Paris, can certify.'"* 



LETTER VII. 

To Dr. Beyer. 



" In my last letter the shortness of time would not permit me to give an an- 
swer with respect to the rehtion of the boy of Skara, which, if true, proves the 
communication of spirits with man. A genteel and rich family here in Stock- 
holm are desirous of taking the boy into cheir house, and to educate him in every 
branch he may wish to learn. If the youth has an inclination, and could have 
an opportunity of the company of some person coming this way, the family 
would be very happy ; and in that case you will be pleased to furnish thirty 
dollars for the expenses on the journey, and to give him my direction, that I may 
conduct him to the house. I will pass in silence his vision of the white serpents, 
which he had in his tender infancy, especially as it may admit of being explain- 
ed in different senses ; but his knowing the use of herbs, and the cure of certain 
diseases, if really the case, is not from the reason, that such diseases and cures 
exist in the other life among spirits and angels; but there exist spiritual diseases 
and spiritual uses, which correspond with the natural diseases and cures in this 
world, so that the correspondences effect such things when they happen. And 
as there are no natural diseases among the spirits in the spiritual world, there 
are neither any hospitals; but, instead of them there are spiritual mad-houses, 
in which are those who theoretically denied God, and in others, such as practi- 
cally did the same. Those who in the world were idiots, at their arrival in the 
other world are also foolish and idiots ; but being divested of their externals, 
and their internals opened as is the case with them all, they acquire an under- 



* Respecting Swedenborg's visit to Paris, in order to publish in that city his " Uni- 
versal Theology, ^c." See above p. 91. 



130 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

standing agreeable to their former quality and life, inasmuch as the actual follies 
and madnesses dwell in the external natural man, and not in the internal spiritual. 

*' With regard to what passed in the earliest part of my life, about which you 
wish to be informed : from my fourth to my tenth year, my thoughts were con- 
stantly engrossed by reflecting upon God, on salvation, and on the spiritual 
affections of man. I often revealed things in my discourse, which filled my pa- 
rents with astonishment, and made them declare at times, that certainly the angels 
spoke through my mouth. 

" From my sixth to my twelfth year, it was my greatest delight to converse 
with the clergy concerning faith ; to whom I often observed, that charity or love 
was the life of faith, and that this vivifying charity or love ims no other than the 
love of one's neighbor ; that God vouchsafes this faith to every one ; but that it is 
adopted by those only who practise that charity. 

" I knew of no other faith or belief at that time, than that God is the Creator and 
Preserver of Nature ; that he endues man with understanding, good inclina- 
tions, and other gifts thence derived. 

*' I knew nothing at that time of this systematic or dogmatic kind of faith, 
that God the Father imputes the righteousness or merits of his Son to whomso- 
ever, and at such times, as he wills, even to the impenitent. And had I heard 
of such kind of faith, it would have been then, as now, perfectly unintelligible 
to me. — I remain, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 

" Stockholm, Nov. 14, 1769." 



LETTER VIII. 

To Dr. Beyer. 



" I received yours of Dec. 2d this day, also the printed letter, which at first 
caused a clamor among a great part of the clerical body ; yet clamor does no harm, 
being like the ferment in wine when fermenting, after which it is purified ; for unless 
what is ivrong is brought into a state of ventilation, and is thus rejected, what is right 
cannot be discerned and received. I have, indeed, been informed of the proceed- 
ings of the deputies in the clerical assembly of the Diet, but I did not stir one 
step to defend that cause ; knowing that the Lord Himself, our Saviour, defends 
His church, particularly against those who refuse to enter through the right door 
into the sheepfold, that is, into the church, and thus into heaven ; such are called 
thieves and robbers. The Lord Himself declares, ' He that entereth not by the door 
into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, is a thief and a robber; I 
am the door, if any man enters by me, he shall be saved, and he shall find pas- 
ture ' (John X. 1,7, 8, 9). I have moreover been told by an angel from the Lord, 
that I may rest securely upon my arm in the night, by which is meant that night, in 
which the world is now immersed, as to what relates to the church. 

*' I have also read the appendix to The Spy, No- 48, and in the concluding ex- 
pressions I perceive the interior sense of the author, which is easily discovered. 

" With respect to the two clergymen whom your deceased wife has spoken of, 
she has not mentioned their names, for which reason neither can I mention 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. 131 

them. It is well known, that among the clergy there are also erroneous spirits, 
in this country as well as in other parts of the world. When she had related 
this among other things, she departed to the dragon spirits (draconicos), who on 
the day of her death first spoke through her, and she is still with them. 

" An extract from the records by the dean (Ekebom) of Dec. 6th, has also been 
communicated to me, in which he still continues his usual indecent invectives, 
which I may consider as barkings, against which we must not attempt to take 
up a stone to cast at them aod to drive them away. 

" I am glad that you are translating into Swedish the little work of The Inter- 
course between the Soul and Body. It has been very well received abroad in all 
places, as well as by many inteUigent persons here in Stockholm. — I remain, &c,, 

" Emanuel Sweden borg. 

" Stockholm, Dec. 29, 1769." 



LETTER IX. 



To Dr. Beyer. 



"I received your letter dated the 18th March, together with a copy of that 
which you delivered to his Majesty. You mention also that a report has arrived 
at Gottenburg, concerning a resolution which was to have been proposed in the 
senate ; but that, since the copy of that letter which I wrote you has been com- 
municated to senator Count Ekeblad, and to the great chancellor of justice, this 
matter has been brought forward again, and terminated agreeably to the letter 
from the great chancellor of justice to the Consistory at Gottenburg, of which 
letter [ request you to send me a copy. Had the first proposal been established, 
that Swedenborgianism, as they call it, should not be spoken of, and this, notwith- 
standing, signifies the worship of the Lord, what would have been the result, but 
a fear in the clergy to speak about Christ and his protection of the human race ; 
for in such case they would have i*un the risk of being insulted as supporters of 
Swedenborgianism, and in consequence thereof, Christianity in Sweden would 
decrease and become Socinianism, and finally Heathenism, which may be con- 
firmed from Matthew xii. 30, and Mark ix. 40, Such would have been the off- 
spring born from that first proposal. This is the reason, that when certain zeal- 
ous clergymen in this city first heard the rumor thereof, that they became aston- 
ished, imagining justly that, by such a way of proceeding, Christianity in this 
country would totally vanish. I am informed that the bishops and many of 
the clerical order of the states at the Diet expressed themselves with great pro- 
priet)^ concerning those doctrinal principles which were then discussed. 

" What has been presented to the consistories against my writings, not hav- 
ing been communicated to me, I am totally ignorant of what passed in the 
senate on that subject. 

" I go next June to Amsterdam, where I intend to publish the Universal Theolo- 
gy of the New Church ; the worship of the Lord is the foundation therein, and if 
upon that foundation the true house, or temple, shall not be built, others will 
erect upon it lupanaria, or brothels.* 



* Which spiritually mean perversions and falsifications of all the truths of the Word. 
(See Rev. xvii.) 



132 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SVVEDENBORG. 

"As to what regards the dracoiiical spirits, they are all removed far towards 
the south, where the learned obtain a certain place, and every one there his cel- 
lulam,or little chamber, wherein he confirms himseli in justrfication by faith alone ; 
and they who have confirmed this from the Word of God, depart thence into a 
desert, and so on further. The rest, when they come out, obtain no dwellings. 
To what place they afterwards go, I do not yet know : in heaven there is no 
place for them. It befals them according to the description in the Apocalypse 
Revealed, 421. But that abyss which is there described is now removed farther 
in the south, as observed before.— I remain, with all friendship and confidence, 
^^•» " Emanuel Swedenborg. 

Stockholm, April 30, 1770. 



LETTER X. 

To Br. Beyer. 

" As I am going, in a few days, to Amsterdam, I shall take my leave of you 
in this letter, hoping that our Saviour will support you in good health, preserve 
you from farther violence, and bless your thoughts. I convey you herewith the 
copy, of a letter, which I am about to send to the universities, as well as to the 
great chancellor of justice. Please to salute kindly Dr. Rosen, and I am, &c., 

" Emanuel Sweden borg. 

" Stockholm, July 23, 1770." 

Copy of a Letter addressed to the Universities of TJpsal, Lund and Albo. 

" In a few days I am going to Amsterdam, and intend to publish the whole 
Theology of the New Church, the foundation whereof will be the worship of the 
Lord our Saviour, on which foundation, if no temple should now be built, lupa- 
naria (brothels)* would be erected. 

" Now having been informed, that the religious trial, relative to Dr. Beyer and 
Dr. Rosen, in Gottenburg, was immediately taken up and surprisingly termi- 
nated by the senate, and as this may become a subject of conversation in many 
places during my absence, therefore, to prevent any malicious judgment, which 
may probably proceed from the mouths of certain persons, arising from their 
ignorance or interior malice, it is my duty from the importance and necessity of 
the subject, to communicate what I have delivered to his Majesty thereon, 
which is as follows : — 

" ' I have been informed by two gentlemen in the senatorial department of justice, 
that the senators are pontifex maximus, to which I then gave no answer ; but in 
case I should still hear such assertions from them, I shall answer that they are 
not at all pontifex maximus, but vicarius vicarii pontificis maximi ; because Jesus 
Christ our Saviour is the only Pontifex Maximus; the states of the kingdom are 
His vicarius, wherefore they are answerable to Him, and the senators are the 
vicar a (or the states ; because they are appointed, and that hence they are vicarius 
vicarii pontificis maximi. That the Pope of Rome called himseU pontificem maxi- 
mum, is of pride, because he has taken and assumed to himself all the power of 
Christ our Saviour, and placed himself on His throne, making the people believe 
that he is Christ upon earth. Every inferior pontifex or vicarius pontificis maximi 

* See above p. 131, note. 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. ' 133 

onght to have iheir consistory. The states of the kmgdom have their consistory' 
ill the ecclesiastical division of the states, and the senators have their consistory, 
particularly at the universities ; but in the determination of this matter they 
have acknowledged the consistory of Gottenburg to be their consistory, and 
have probably assented verbatim to the opinions of that consistory, not being ap- 
prised that this was the most important and the most necessary subject that 
has been brought forward these 1700 years in any council or senate, because it 
concerns the New Church, which is predicted by the Lord in Daniel and in the 
Apocalypse, and agrees with what oi.\r Lord says in Matt. xxiv. 22. 

*' ' I have not yet received the answer of the senate. It has been once pre- 
sented, but resolved that it should rest till the return of those senators who were 
present on the former occasion. — I remain, &c., 

"'Emanuel Swedenborg." 



LETTER XI. 

To Dr. Beyer. 

"In the letter of the honored Mr. P. Hammarberg, I have received a copy of 
the deposition or reflections of Dr. Ekebom, the dean, concerning the writings 
pubhshed by me. Enclosed you will receive my defence, which yon wiU have 
the kindness to hand over to the venerable Consistory, after having taken a copy 
of it for yourself, and one for the bishop, which I will thank you to send to him. 
Should the Dr. and Dean [Ekebom] not recal his deposition or reflections, and 
entirely reject them, I intend, as the remarks or opinions of the council, of the 
high court, and of the colleges, have been published, that the deposition of the 
dean and my defence shall also be published ; upon which I can afterwards 
commence an action at law concerning the proceedings. INext week I intend 
to go to Paris.* Should anything particularly important occur in this matter, I 
wish in Paris to receive news concerning it, through a letter addressed to the 
care of Count Gust. Phil. Creutz, the ambassador. With heartfelt saluiations to 
my acquaintance and friends in Gottenburg, I remain, &c. 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, April 15, 1769." 



letter XII, 

To Dr. Beyer. 

"I send you herewith ten copies of the work published by me, entitled, De 
Amove Conjugiali, w^hich you can sell, when an opportunity arises, at nine cop- 
per dollars (Swedish) the copy. This book is much in request at Paris, and in 
many places in Germany. 

"Of the work lately published, namely, Summaria Expositio Doctrince Novcb Ec- 
desix, I send only one copy : you will oblige me by keeping this for yourself 
alone, and by communicating it to nobody, because it contains an improvement 
of the whole system of theology prevalent at the present day in the Christian 

* Respecting Swedenborg's visit to Paris, see above p. 'Jl. 



134 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

world ; and, to a certain extent, it also contains the theology, which shall be 
that of the New Church. What is therein contained will, with difficulty, be un- 
derstood by any in Gottenburg, except by yourself. This small work has been 
sent to all the professors and divines in Holland, and has already come to the 
principal German universities, and it is now being translated into English at 
London : it will also be published at Paris. On which account we must first 
wait for the opinions and judgment concerning it out of Sweden, before it is 
made publicly known in Sweden. I therefore request that you will, till then, 
keep it for yourself. 

*' On the 26th April I shall set off for Paris. I remain, with all friendly wishes, 
&c., yours, &c., 

"Ei\IANUEL SvfEDENBORG, 

** Amsterdam, April 23, 1769." 



LETTER xni. 
To Dr. Beyer. 



" Only two days ago I received your letter of the last month (March), and was 
surprised, as I read it through, at the reports, which, it appears, have come 
from Stockholm to Gottenburg, to the effect that yourself, together with Dr. 
Rosen, shall be deposed, and banished the country, which I certainly cannot be- 
lieve, since it contradicts ray reason to suppose, that any person can be deposed 
from his office, and banished from the country, from his mere allegation that he 
is a heretic in the highest degree, without even an inquiry being made into the 
principal state of the question. In the printed protocols I nowhere find that the 
parties have even gone into the subject, but that they have only endeavored to 
make an attack [upon my writings] with unworthy reproaches and insults, 
whereas the subject itself, and the state of the question is this : whether it be 
permitted to address ourselves immediately to the Redeemer and Saviour Jesus, 
Christ, or whether we be obliged to go a round-about way, namely, to God the 
Father, that he may impute to us the merit and righteousness of his Son and 
send the holy spirit ? But that we should go the other way, which is the straight 
way, namely, to the Redeemer Jesus Christ, is in accordance both with the 
Augsburg Confession, and the Formula Concordice, and also with our own prayers 
and psalms ; and it entirely agrees with the Word of God. 

" In the Augsburg Confession are the following words : — ' For [the Scripture] 
sets before us Christ alone as Mediator, Propitiator, High Priest, and Intercessor ; 
he is to be invoked, or addressed ; and he has promised that he will hear our 
prayers; and the Sacred Scripture very greatly approves of this worship, namely, 
that he should be invoked, or addressed, in all afflictions' (1 John ii. 1). 

" In the Formvia Concordice are the following v/ords : * We have a command, 
that we should call mpon Christ according to that saying, ' Come unto me all ye 
who labor,' &c., which is certainly said to us ; and Isaiah says, ch. xi. * In that 
day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people. 
On him shall the nations call.' And in Psalm xlv. ' The rich among the people 
shall entreat thy countenance.' And in Psalm Ixxii. ' And all kings of the earth 
shall fall down before him,' And in another verse, * They shall pray before him 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. G. A. BEYER. 185 

continually.' And in Joiin v. Clirist says, ' All shall honor the Son, even as they 
honor the Father.' See also Paul, i., Thess. ii. What is here adduced is taken 
verbatim therefrom {Formula Concordicc). 

" hi our Psalm book there are prayers and psalms which are addressed solely 
to Jesus Christ. As an example, I will adduce only from Psalm 266, the follow- 
ing, ' Jesus is my defence, and my heart's delight. Hear, Jesus, my voice! 
Depending on Christ I shall be safe, and free from sin, I shall not fear Satan, 
howsoever he may rage ; Jesus stands by me. All cares which burden my heart 
I cast upon Jesus ; he cares for me before the day begins ; now I live securely/ 
Verses 1, 3, 8. 

" Besides all this, there are m two of my letters,* which have been received and 
printed in the Gottenburg protocols, many proofs adduced from the whole of the 
Formula Concordia, that our Saviour is, according to his human nature, also God, 
which Luther and the Formula Concordice corroborate with all power, and which 
also is in agreement with the entire Word of God. I will here only refer you to 
Colos. ii. 9 ; 1 Epist. John v. 20, 21. More to the same purport has been adduced 
from one of my works, an extract of which may be found in the printed proto- 
cols or reports of the Gottenburg Consistory. This [doctrine] is there called 
Swedenhorgianism ; but for my part I call it true Christianity. 

*'This is the state of the question, concerning which we now contend, which 
on the one side the members of the Consistory have not, in the least, touched, 
but have only burst forth into shameful reproaches, which are of such a nature 
as to affect not only my person and honor, but even our Redeemer and his holi- 
ness. 

•' As to the Son of God from eternity, about which subject there is also a dis- 
pute, I have also proved, that in the Apostle's creed, which is received through- 
out the whole Christian world, and which contains the teaching of the apostles, 
no other Son of God is meant, than the Son of God born in time, who is our 
Redeemer himself, to whom every man can address himself, and, according to 
the Augsburg Confession and the Formula ConcordicBi he must address himself, in 
order to find salvation. If this doctrine v/ere taken away, I would rather dwell 
in Tartary than in Christendom. Should another wish to go still further, to a 
Son from eternity, he is free to do so. 

" Through your letter, and the intimated fear respecting hard treatment, I have 
been occasioned to unfold and explain the matter in this manner, as theological 
subjects are of such a nature, that a person may easily wander in darkness re- 
specting them, particularly if the accusers, from pretended learning, blacken 
them with such gross expressions, and thus kill the * male child ' with murder- 
ous words. However, I believe, and I feel persuaded, that his Majesty and his 
enlightened counsellors will judge of the matter according to its true nature, and 
Yv^ithout reference to the glosses and remarks of the dean and of others : for il 
you were deposed and banished from the country, what else would the present 
as well as future generations say, but that this had happened on no other ac- 
count, than because you had addressed yourself immediately to our Lord and 
Saviour, and, notwithstanding, you did not deny the Trinity. Would not this 
cause every one to be greatly astonished and indignant.' This subject, in its 

* These letters may be seen above p. 127-*132. 



136 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

whole extent, will soon be laid before the whole Christian world,* the judgment 
of which I shall afterwards hand over to his Majesty, and to the honorable mem- 
bers of the state : for the priestly order, in the assembly of the state, is not au- 
thorized to hand over to his Majesty any particular depositions which should 
necessarily be followed. Religious matters belong also to others. 

" As to your journey hither, I do not see that your presence could contribute 
much to your defence. Will you have the kindness to send a copy of this letter 
to his Excellence, the Counsellor N. N. von Stockenstrom, and one to his Excel- 
lence, the Counsellor N. N. Hermansson, with the remark, that you have sent 
them by my desire. I also intend to send a copy of it to the Chancellor of Jus- 
tice, and another copy to his Excellence Count Ekeblad. 

" I remain, &c. Stc. 

" Emanuel Sweden borg. 
" Stockholm, April 12, 1770." 



LETTER XIV. 

To Dr. Beyer. 

" Captain Sjoberg has informed me, that he has a commission from Mr. Ham- 
marberg to purchase some copies of the works published by me, viz. four of 
each, and also of the work which has just appeared ; but on account of the 
strict prohibition, the captain durst only take one copy of each ; besides this I 
have made him a present of a copy of the last published work. Perhaps Mr. 
Hammarberg may know of some way of receiving another copy, if it were sent 
afterwards. In a few days I shall send to Stockholm by Captain Casp. Nyberg 
two copies of the work just published entitled ' Vera Religio Christiana,' one for 
the Bishop, Dr. Menander, and the other for the Bishop, Dr. Serenius, and 
amongst other matters, I shall give" them to understand, that so soon as the as- 
sembly of the states is pretty numerously attended, I shall sejid in a formal com- 
plaint about the proceeding of the counsellor of state in the Gottenburg affair 
concerning you and me ; from which I hope for a favorable result. Herewith 
I send you two copies of the printed promemoriaf against Dr. Ernesti. You can, 
if you please, communicate one to the members of the Consistory, as it has been 
circulated in Germany. What is said therein is also applicable to your dean. 
With heartfelt salutations to Dr. Rosen. — I remain, &c. 

"Emanuel Svtedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, July 2, 1771." 



Immediately after the preceding letter to Dr. Beyer, the Swedish Documents observe, i 
that in the correspondence with that gentleman the following remarkable lines were 
found. 

" In the small treatise sent (to you) as well as in my former writings, I do not i 
mean a Son of God horn from eternity, but a Son of God conceived and born in the 
ivorld, in ivhom is the Divine Trinity. In the Apostle's Creed, which was the con- 

* Swedenborg wrote this a short time bel'ore he published the Universal Theology, fyc | 

t This ^rorncmorm, which only consists of a lew lines in reply to Dr. Ernesti's attack ' 

upon E. S. in his Bihliotheca Tkcoiogica, p. 7S4, may be seen a'ppended to the English ] 

translation of the Coronis, or Appendix to the True Christian Religion. i 



DECLA.RATION OF DR. G. A. BEYER. 137 

fess ion of faith of the Apostolic church, no other Son of God is named, still less 
is any other understood in the Evangelists. Luke i, 32, 35 ; Matt. iii. 17 ; xvii. 
5; John XX. 32; 1 John v. 20, 21. But that the Council of Nice afterwards 
assumed a Son of God born from eternity, and added another divine person, took 
place because they could find no other way to put down the errors of Arius; 
and on this account it is, that the church, at the present time particularly insists 
that reason shall be held captive in obedience to a blind faith. But whether it 
can come into the conception, or idea, of man so to explain the subject may 
probably be seen in No, 117, and also in No. 44." — (See Sum. Expo.) 



XXIII, 

A DECLARATION 

RESPECTING THE 

DOCTRIiN'ES TAUGHT BY SWEDENBORQ, 

DELIVERED IN OBEDIENCE TO THE ROYAL COMMAND, 
JANUARY 2, 1770, TO HIS MAJESTY, ADOLPHUS FREDERIC, KING OF SWEDEN, 

BY GABRIEL ANDREW BEYER, D.D., 

PROFESSOR OF GREEK LITERATURE, AND MEMBER OF THE CONSISTORY OF GOTTENBURG. 



As the reader will naturally desire to know something of the circumstances which 
gave occasion to the following '* Declaration," a few particulars are submitted for his 
satisfaction. A persecution was excited by the dean of Gottenburg, in Sweden, and 
some of his clergy, against the Rev. Drs. Beyer and Rosen, members of the ecclesiastical 
Consistory of that place, in consequence of their having read with approbation the 
theological writings of their eminent countryman, Emanuel Swedenborg. The object 
of the dean's mistaken zeal was, to obtain a prohibition of the reading of those writings 
as heretical, and to inflict upon those who favored them tlie severe penalties, which the 
laws of the kingdom then allowed in cases of dissent from the Swedish Lutheran Church. 
The affair came under the cognizance of the supreme council of the state, called, under 
the form of government at that time established, the senate, in which the king himself 
presided : and it was in obedience to a mandate issued from this authority, requiring of 
Dr. Beyer an explicit statement of his sentiments respecting the writings of Swedenborg, 
that the following paper was drawn up. It had considerable weight hi preventing the 
government from coming to a rash and unjust conclusion respecting the subject of it; 
and it is well calculated to have a similar influence upon those into whose hands it may 
now fall. When it is known that the effect of a condemnatory sentence would have 
been the banishment of the writer from his native land, every candid person must ad- 
mire the modest constancy which this document evinces ; and, independently of this 
consideration, must be disposed to think favorably of sentiments which could inspire so 
steady a conviction of their truth in a mind evidently so well qualified to form a correct 
judgment on such subjects. We behold in the author of this paper a pious and learned 
man, who, amid the utmost respect for the institutions of Iiis country, discovers an under- 
standing and temper superior to common prejudices and well adapted for the right ap- 
10 



138 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

prehension of sacred truths, ability to explain and defend them, and a courage prepared 
to suffer anything rather than renounce or disguise them. We also are presented with 
some of the reasons which led him to his conclusions, and which will he found well 
worthy of the most serious consideration. 



DECLARATION, &c. 



** It is your Majesty's most gracious order, that there should be sent in an un- 
equivocal representation of the light in which the members of theXonsistory re- 
gard the principles of Assessor Swedenborg. 

"This high order, in agreement with the memorial of the chancellor of justice, 
dictates the manner in which this representation is to be regularly drawn up, 
after every possible information has been collected from his voluminous writ- 
ings. 

" Having been from my infancy watchful respecting the established form of 
doctrine, and zealous for its protection, of which some of my poor attempts in 
writing are proofs, it happened about four years ago that I met with some of 
Assessor Swedenborg's works. His mode of writing on theology at first ap- 
peared to me incomprehensible, and without interest ; but being led forward by 
curiosity to peruse about half a volume with calm attention, I discovered import- 
ant reasons to form a resolution not to desist until I had perused the whole ojf 
his writings on that subject: and, may I be permitted to observe with the most 
profound submission, that notwithstanding I devoted to the perusal of them 
every moment that could be spared from the duties of my official situation, by 
which I was enabled to read some of them over and over, still could 1 wish to 
be allowed to weigh them many years longer, in order to qualify myself to give 
a mature account of their important contents. The theological works of Asses- 
sor Swedenborg are all printed, in large quarto-, in Latin. 

" Before 1 proceed to my most humble ' Declaration,' it behoves me seriously 
to consider what is the power and testimony of the Holy Word, and at the same 
time to keep in sight the rules and orders of the church; and as far as I adhere 
to these, I hope my ' Declaration' will be graciously judged of, as coming from 
one who is not influenced, on this occasion, by the consideration of who and 
where, and by what men of high reputation the subject of theology has been regard- 
ed as decided. Your Majesty graciously gives permission, even to the meanest 
of your subjects, to substantiate his opinions on the best ground he is able. Our 
Lord's own words are : ' But he not ye called Rabbi : for one is your master (teacher) 
even Christ ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth : for 
one is your father which ts in heaven. Neither be ye called masters (teachers) : for one 
is your master (teacher), even ChrisV (Matt, xxiii, 8, 9, 10). 

'• Accordingly, the compilers of the Articles of Faith received in the Swedish 
Church say, * We believe, acknowledge, and teach, that the only rules and guides 
by which all doctrines and all teachers of doctrines must be viewed and judged are, 
and can be no other than, the writings of the prophets and apostles, both in the 
Old and New Testam.ent. Holy Writ alone is acknowledged as a measure, rule, 
and judge ; by which, as by a touchstone, all doctrines must be accurately in- 
vestigated and decided upon as to whether they be true or false.' 

" As, therefore, doctrine is deemed pure so far only as it flows from the Word 



DECLARATION OF DR. G. A. BEYER. 139 

of God, and is proved thereby, and as the privilege of avowing it, when in con- 
formity with the law of God, is allowed, I venture in tny wealvness, yet with 
humble confidence, to pour forth the deepest sentiments of my heart, respecting 
the theological writings of Assessor Swedenborg. 

•'Convinced by experience, I must in the first place observe, that no man is 
competent to give a just and suitable judgment of those writings, who has not 
read them, or who has read them only superficially, or with a determination in 
his heart to reject them, after having perused, without examination, some de- 
tached parts only : neither is he competent who rejects them as soon as he finds 
anything that militates against those doctrines, which he has long cherished and 
acknowledged as true, and of which perhaps he is but too blindly enamoured : 
nor is he competent, who is an ardent, yet indiscriminating Biblical scholar, that, 
in explaining the meaning of the Scriptures, confines his ideas to the literal ex- 
pression or signification only : and, lastly, neither is he competent, who has alto- 
gether devoted himself to sensual indulgences, and the love of the world. 

" But, on the other hand, the lover of truth, whose head and heart are free from 
the foregoing shackles, — who will impartially try the spirits, whether they are of 
God (1 John iv. 1), and who prays to the Lord for illumination, will discover 
many remarkable circumstances in the works of this enlightened author which 
give them a claim on his attention. For instance, though it is now twenty years 
since they were first published and spread abroad amongst most of the European 
states, universities, libraries, and learned men, they stand, as far as we know, 
without a single refutation to this hour, if we except some partial reviews, filled 
with crude and calumniating judgments, and void of all rational arguments. It 
will also be seen, that there beams forth throughout the writings of Assessor 
Swedenborg the most satisfactory evidence of his intimate acquaintance with 
the Hebrew, Greek, and Arabic languages, to say nothing of the Latin; and a 
most abundant illustration and corroboration of the subjects he treats of, from 
all the commendable and useful scien3es ; — such as philosophy in its deepest 
and most exalted recesses, mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, experimental 
philosophy, natural history, architecture, history, and, above all, anatomy. And 
further, throughout all his works, there is discoverable a complete harmony, an 
uninterrupted order in the subjects, and such a coherence in their proofs, as 
links them together in as close a connexion as those of any mathematical dem- 
onstration: indeed, when viewed by those who are willing to accompany the 
author in his chain of evidence, they are such as must carry conviction to every 
candid mind. It will likewise be discovered, that the fundamental opinions 
with which the author first sets out are the same throughout, and are proceeded 
upon in the other works, which everywhere harmonize and agree with them. 
In short, it will be found, that in the whole history of learned men no example 
can be produced, which can, in all the above considerations, be compared with 
that of our author. 

" It may be further remarked, that all his theoretical positions lead to a prac- 
tical result; for which purpose amendment of life is every where insisted upon, to- 
gether: with the necessity of bringing it into agreement with the order and com- 
mandments of heaven. It will also be discovered, that better subjects of the 
state cannot be desired than those whose principles are formed upon these doc- 
trines. 



140 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

" Should we proceed in our inquiry, and judge of the claims of these writ- 
tings to our attention by their use in illustrating the Holy Word, it will then be 
found, that the most difficult passages which the Sacred Records contain, may, 
upon Assessor Swedenborg's mode of explication, be developed in a satisfactory 
manner ; and that even those things hard to be understood, in the writings of Paul, 
may, by this light, be easily comprehended. Let no person, therefore, hereafter 
think of the author as Festus did when he addressed Paul, and said, ' Much learn- 
ing doth make thee mad' (Acts xxvi. 24). 

" But to take a nearer view of the subject, these theological writings may be 
divided into three general classes : the first, comprehending every point touch- 
ing the interpretation of the Holy Scriptures ; the second, everything appertaining 
to the doctrines of religion; and the third, the numerous things that the author 
has seen or heard, during his intercourse and experience with the spiritual 
world. 

1. " With regard to ilie Interpretation of the Sacred Scriptures, it is immediately to 
be perceived, that the obscure views of spiritual truth, pursued at a guess by 
Origen, Cocceius, and many other pious divines, and ^een but by partial glimpses, 
have, by Assessor Swedenborg in his Arcana Ccelestia, and the two works on 
the Apocahjpse, been brought forth to the full light of day. This will manifestly 
appear, whenever, with due consideration and an acquaintance with the terms 
employed to elucidate his principles, we read attentively and successively the 
contents prefixed to each chapter, by which means we shall acquire a connected 
general idea of that book of the Word which he is proceeding to explain ; but still 
stronger will be our light if we proceed to each chapter individually, and osberve 
from the given signification of each word, how all the chapters are united in a 
connected series in the internal sense. The explanation of words and things used 
by Swedenborg is constant and invariable ; and when once apprehended, may, 
according to the soundest rules of interpretation, be applied to other parts of the 
Word, much in the way that we use the lexical interpretation of words to enable 
us to study the works of a foreign author in their original language. How un- 
expectedly will it be found upon such an investigation, that there are discovera- 
ble, even in those books which are to all appearance merely historical, purely 
spiritual and celestial things; that is, things in the highest degree worthy of the 
wisdom of God, relating solely to himself, to heaven, and to the church ! — as, 
for example, in the history of Lot and his daughters (Genesis xix. 31). And 
lest any person should hastily suppose that such signification and interpretation 
are merely imaginary, the author has observed with all possible care the most 
universally acknowledged rule of interpretation, that the Scriptures must be inter- 
preted by the Scriptures ,- his interpretation is consequently conducted upon the 
most conclusive principles. And forasmuch as the majesty and glory of the 
spiritual and celestial senses are veiled in the heavenly cloud, or literal sense of 
the Word, he has been truly qualified from on high to dispel the mist, — to bring 
to light and fully to explain what the genuine doctrines of the church ought to 
be ; for as the church is spiritual, it must derive all that makes it such from the 
spirituality of the Word, so that there can be no truth of the church, unless at 
the same time it be a truth of heaven ; and there can be no consociation and 
conjunction with the Lord and heaven, but so far as the men of the church think 



DECLARATION OF DR. G. A. BEYER. 141 

from the Word, out of the Word, and uaiformly with the Word, because the 
Lord is Himself the Word (1 John i. 14). 

•' The exalted ideas which we ought to cherish respecting the Holy Scriptures 
are shown and proved in his work concerning the Sacred ScriptureSy and in that 
concerning the White Horse, But should the question here be asked. Why at 
this late period of time, and not earlier, such a meaning should be brought to 
light, a copious and satisfactory answer will be found in many parts of his writ- 
ings ; as for example, in the work on the Angelic Wisdom concerning the Divine 
Providence, 264. The author here observes, ' That a doubt may be inferred against 
the Divine Providence, because heretofore it was not known, that in every particular of 
the Word there is a spiritual sense, and that its holiness consists therein. For,' says he, 
' it may be suggested as a doubt against the Divine Providence, Why is this re- 
vealed now for the first time, and why by this or that person, and not by any 
primate of the church ? But whether a primate, or the servant of a primate, be 
made choice of for such a work, depends upon the Lord's good pleasure*, to 
whom both the one and the other are best known. But the reason why that 
sense of the Word was not revealed before, is, because if it had been revealed 
before, the church would have profaned it, and thereby have profaned the sanc- 
tity of the Word itself. The church, not long after its establishment, was con- 
verted into Babylon, and afterwards into Philistia ; and Babylon does indeed ac- 
knowledge the Word, but yet contemns it, saying, that the Holy Ghost inspires 
them in their supreme decisions equally as much as it inspired the prophets. A 
reason why they acknowledge the Word, is, for the sake of the Pope's vicarship, 
which they found on the Lord's words to Peter ; but yet they contemn it, be- 
cause it does not accord with their views. For that reason also it is taken from 
the people and hid in monasteries, where there are but few who read it Where- 
fore, if the spiritual sense of the Word, in which the Lord dwells, and at the 
same time all angelic wisdom had been revealed, the Word would have been 
profaned ; not only as is now the case in its ultimates, which are the things con- 
tained in the literal sense, but also in its intimates, or inmost meaning. Philistia, 
by which is meant faith separate from charity, would also have profaned the 
spiritual sense of the Word, because it places salvation in certain words which 
are to be thought and spoken, and not in any good that is to be done, as was 
shown before, and so makes that a saving principle which is not such ; and, 
moreover, removes the understanding from things which ought to be believed. 
And what have such persons to do with the light in which the spiritual sense of 
the Word is ? Would it not be turned by them into darkness ? When the natural 
sense is turned into darkness, what would the spiritual sense be ? Is there any 
one of those who have confirmed themselves in faith separated from charity, and 
in justification by it alone, that desires to know what the good of life is ; or 
what love to the Lord is, and towards their neighbor; or what charity is; what 
the goods of charity ; what good works are, and what it is to do ; yea, what 
faith is in its essence, or any genuine truth that constitutes it ? They write vol- 
umes, and confirm nothing but what they call faith ; and all the things above re- 
cited, they say are contained in that faith. From which it is evident, that if the 
spiritual sense of the Word had been revealed before, the case would have been 
according to what the Lord says in Matliew, *' If thine eye be evil, thy whole body 
ihall befall of darkness ; if, therefore, the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is 



142 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEBENBORG. 

that darkness" (vi. 23). By the eye, in the spiritual sense of the Word, is meant 
the understanding. Hence, then, it is evident, that the spiritual sense of the Word 
was to be revealed for a new church, which will acknov/ledge and worship the 
Lord only, and hold His Word sacred, and love divine truths, and reject faith 
separated from charity. But more may be seen relative to this sense of the Word, 
in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scripture, 6-26 ; as, what 
the spiritual sense of the Word is^-26 : that there is a spiritual sense in all and 
every particular of the Word, 9-17 : that it is by virtue of the spiritual sense that 
the Word is of divine inspiration, and holy in every single expression, 18, 19 : 
that the spiritual sense of the Word has been heretofore unknown, and why it 
was not revealed before, 2a-25 : that from henceforth the spiritual sense of the 
Word will be opened to none but those who are principled in genuine truths 
from the Lord, 26. From these considerations, then, it may appear, that it is of 
the Divine Providence of the Lord that the spiritual sense has been concealed 
from the world until the present age, and in the mean time was preserved in 
heaven among the angels, who from it derive their wisdom. This sense was 
known and also cultivated among the ancients who lived before Moses ; but in- 
asmuch as their posterity converted the correspondences, of which solely their 
Word, and, consequently, their religion consisted, into various idolatries, and 
the Egyptians into magic, the knowledge of it, by the Divine Providence of the 
Lord, was withdrawn, — first among the children of Israel, and afterwards, for 
the reasons mentioned above, among Christians, and is now first opened for the 
Lord's New Church.' 

11. In regard to the Doctrines of Religion contained in our author's works, and 
which are dispersed through them all, but especially through those volumes 
which constitute the second class of his writings ; we see them everywhere 
illuminated, and, even according to the letter, unanswerably confirmed, by the 
clearest declarations of the Word. For it is a fundamental rule with him respect- 
ing every doctrine of the church, that it must be drawn from the literal meaning 
of the Word, taken in its proper series and connexion, and confirmed thereby. 
This rule he has pursued in all his doctrines, which are always clearly proved 
by the most unquestionable passages of Scripture. See, for example, how he 
has demonstrated, in the Doctrine concerning the Lord, that there is but one God; 
that Jesus Christ is that God; and that in Him is the Divine Trinity, called 
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

" Every part, therefore, of Swedenborg's writings will, upon a due investiga- 
tion, have a tendency to enable us to see and to acknowledge,— j^r.s/, an unde- 
niable conformity between his doctrines and the genuine meaning of the Word 
of God : secondly, such a strength in the demonstrations as cannot be overthrown 
if we take this for a principle, that the doctrine of the church must be that wisdom 
which Cometh from above (^Janies iii. 17): thirdly, in these writings there will be 
found a thorough harmony with the doctrines contained in the writings of the 
apostles; which doctrines, by means of the abovementioned principles, are ex- 
cellently illustrated and developed, and thus acquire a peculiar clearness and 
strength, especially when we take notice of what the author alleges in his Doc- 
trine of the Lord, 55, respecting the primitive Christian Church : m\.d fourthly, we 
shall be enabled to see that the tendency of the whole of the author's doctrines 
is, to impress Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as the only God of heaven and earth ; 



DECLARATION OF DR. G. A. BEYER. 143 

the Creator, Redeemer, Saviour, and Regenerator ; the All in All of heaven and the 
church. And farther, he contiiiually insists, that we ought to live according to 
His divine order and commandments, which are, ' to love Him above all things* 
because he is love itself, ' and our neighbor as ourselves.' 

"The most general objections made to the writings of the author by those who 
are ignorant of their true nature, are, that they do away with Christ's satisfac- 
tion; turn people from faith in Christ; set up self-righteousness and human 
merit; and resemble Sociuianism. Nevertheless, u^hen his sentiments upon 
the above subjects are duly examined, it will be evident, from arguments drawn 
and demonstrated from the Word, that as to the first objection, namely, respect- 
ing Christ's Satisfaction, that doctrine is fully admitted : for the Lord, he con- 
tends, in assuming Humanity, fulfilled all that is contained in the Word, from 
the highest divine principle to the lov/est natural principle, which is the proper 
meaning of that phrase. He maintains, further, that in the same Humanity, the 
Lord combated the powers of hell, overcame and subdued them ; that He glori- 
fied His humanity, diat is, rendered it divine, and so is a complete SavIour to 
Eternity ; and that thus, with respect to His Humanity as well as to His Divinity, 
He is the omnipotent God. Higher and more exalted principles respecting the 
Satisfaction made by the Lord for the human race, cannot be required, 

" Respecting the second objection, on the subject of Faith in Christ, no author 
has urged the necessity of such faith with more force. He insists on it in a 
thousand passages, and especially in his comment upon John iii. 16, and xv. 4, 
besides teaching throughout all his wi-itings the impossibility for any Christian 
to enter the kingdom of heaven and to be with the Lord, who does not acknow- 
ledge Jesus Christ to be the only God, the Redeemer, and Justifier. 

" The third objection, as to Self -righteousness and Merit, has no ground what- 
ever in the author's writings. He everywhere keeps close to the above passage 
of John : ' Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, 
except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me' (xv. 4) ; 
and insists that man can only- arrive at a conformity with the divine will by the 
practice of good, in appearance indeed as from himself, but still under the ac- 
knowledgment that in reality it is from the Lord : he therefore maintains, that 
man is in himself nothing but what is evil and false, that is to say, nothing but 
the love of self and of the world ; consequently, that man can claim no merit, 
but that all merit belongs, without the possibility of man's participation in it, to the 
Lord alone. 

*' Respecting the fourth objection, namely, the charge of Socinianism, no man 
can possibly maintain doctrines more repugnant to Socinus and his followers 
than our author, who frequently quotes the principles of Socinus for the express 
purpose of refuting them. 

" Another pretext for opposing our author's labors, is, that his views extend 
beyond the sphere of the received doctrines, and announce high and important 
truths in a manner altogether novel and unusual. In answer to which, it may 
be proper to consider, that as what is spiritual infinitely exceeds in all respects 
that which is natural, and yet additions are daily being made to our stock of 
natural knowledge ; who shall hinder the divine light also from spreading its 
beams as far as it is the will of our Lord God to permit ? And does that man 
act wisely who shuts his intellectual eye against that light, or who puts his can- 



144 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBOKG. 

die under a bushel ? When truths apparently new and unknown, but which in 
their essence are the old and genuine truths, are again manifested, terms must 
likewise be required to express them, which may appear new and unusual at 
first sight, though they are, nevertheless, the necessary vehicles for conveying 
such sublime and important information, 

" in. To proceed briefly, yet explicitly, to the subject of the author's experience 
and intercourse with the spiritual world, and as to what he has seen or heard therein ; 
respecting which it may be affirmed, that a confidence in the reality of what he 
has thus seen or heard, will be the natural result of an acquaintance with, and 
an acknowledgment of, the fundamental principles of his system. For proof of 
some of the ideas suggested in the author's works — such as of that concerning 
the sun in heaven, that it is the essential Love and Wisdom proceeding from the 
Lord; that it is the origin of every good and truth ; that the genuine human 
principle originates in it ; also, that the will and the understanding are the essen- 
tials of man, and that they are the receptacles of good and truth ; that without 
the senses, internal and external, there can be no perception of life ; that life and 
the senses do not exist except in proper organic forms ; that the kingdom of the 
Lord is, from the greatest to the least, a kingdom of ends and uses ; besides 
many other general ideas, of which a complete knowledge may be obtained ; 
see the volume treating of the Wisdom of Angels concerning the Divine Love and 
Wisdom. It may be observed, how little mankind have hitherto been able to 
form, in any degree, a precise idea respecting the eternal world ! With what 
delight then ought we now to learn what has hitherto been unknown, and even 
supposed impossible to be known ! The more these truths are examined, the 
more they will be found to harmonise with the accounts given us in the Holy 
Scriptures, where these subjects are represented to view in* the general literal 
meaning, but are more particularly contained in the spiritual sense. 

" I do not, with all due submission, think it necessary to touch upon those 
titles which have been unthinkingly bestowed upon the author, — such as fanatic, 
visionary, enthusiast, and several others, dismissing them, as applied to so en- 
lightened a servant of the Lord Jesus, as names without any acknowledged 
meaning, only reminding those who sq apply them of the words of Peter, ' Thai 
they speak evil of the things that they understand not' 

"In obedience, therefore, to your Majesty's most gracious command, that I 
should deliver a full and positive ' Declaratio-n' respecting the writings of Swe- 
denborg, I do acknowledge it to be my duty to declare, in all humble confidence, 
that as far as I have proceeded in the study of them, and agreeably to the gift 
granted to me for investigation and judgment, I have found in them nothing but 
what closely coincides with the words of the Lord Himself, and that they shine with a 
light truly divine"* 

* " Some parts of this " Declaration," which had only a local or tennporary refer- 
ence to the Government and Church of Sweden, not being interesting to the generality 
of persons in this country, having been omitted, a few verbal alterations therefore 
became necessary. 



HIS REPLY TO DR. EKEBOM'S DEPOSITION 14( 

XXIV. 

SWEDENBORG'S REPLY 

TO 

DR. EKEBOM'S DEPOSITION. 

DELIVERED TO THE CONSISTORY AT GOTTENBURG, MARCH 22, 1769. 



In connection with Dr. Beyer's" Declaration, ^c." are the two letters which Sweden- 
borg wrote in reply to Dr. Ekebom's " Deposition," which he delivered to the Consistory 
as containing the objections which he raised against Swedenborg's theological writings. 
These two letters are probably the same which Swedenborg mentions in his letter to 
the king.* 

"Dr. Ekebom's 'Reflections' have been communicated to me, which he deli- 
vered in the Consistory, relative to the doctrines of the New Church, which have 
been declared to the world in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, and the Apocalypse 
Revealed, by our Saviour Jesus Christ, through me His servant ; and, forasmuch 
as I find, that the Doctor's 'Reflections' are full of reproaches against me, as 
well as occasionally laden with untruths, I deem it too prolix to reply particu- 
larly to them, especially as I perceive they have been written by a person, who 
gives no bridle to his tongue, and who has no eyes in his forehead, to be able to 
see what is to be found in those writings, conformable to the Word of God, and 
to an enlightened uhderstanding; such are the characters whom our Lord de- 
scribes in Matt. xiii. 13, 14, 15. 1 shall only notice the following words from the 
Doctor's ' Reflections :' That this doctrine is in the highest degree heretical, and, in points 
the most tender to every Christian, Socinian. This doctrine cannot be called hereti- 
cal, forasmuch as in it is acknowledged and confirmed : I. The Divine Trinity; 
see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Concerning the Lord, 55, seq., and the Apoca- 
lypse Revealed, 961, 962. II. The Sanctity of the Holy Scripture, especially as to its 
literal sense ; see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scriptures, 
27, seq., 37, seq., 50, seq., and in the Apocalypse Revealed, 200, 898, 911. III. A 
Christian Life; see the Doctrine of Life for the New Jerusalem, from the Precepts 
of the Decalogue, from the beginning to the end. IV, The Union of Faith and 
Charity; see the Apocalypse Revealed, in various places. And, V. That a Faith in 
God must he directed towards our Saviour, according to his own declaration, John iii, 
15, 16 ; vi. 40 ; xi. 25, 26 ; XX. 31 ; and especially John iii. 35, 36, and Col. ii. 9. 
Likewise from the Formula Concordice, that in Jesus Christ, God is Man, and Man 
is God, 607, 762, 763, 765, 840, seq. That His Haman Nature has been exalted 
to the Divine Power and Majesty, 337, seq., 607, 608, seq., 774, 833, seq, 844, 
847, 852, 861, 863, 869. That unto Jesus Christ was given all power in Heaven 
and Earth, 775, 776, 780, 833. That also as to His Human Nature He fills all 
things by His immediate presence, 337, 375, 600, 608,611,738,768,783,784, 
785, 786; App. 149, 150, with many more passages: see the edition, Leipsic, 

* See above p. 71. 



146 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

1765, Agreeably to these references, and in obedience to what the Lord Himself 
teaches in John xiv. 16, faith in God must be directed towards the Saviour Him- 
self. From this alone it may be concluded, how undeservedly and barefacedly 
this doctrine has been attacked with such opprobrious language, and that it 
could not have been said by a man of a sound heart, ' That it is full of the most 
intolerable fundamental errors, seducing, heretical, captious, and in the highest 
degree to be rejected.' This flood of blasphemy is poured out upon the world, 
although the Doctor allows in his ' Reflections,' 2, that he never read my w^rit- 
ings, in the following words : — ' I do not know Assessor Swedenborg's religious 
system, nor shall I take pains to come at the knowledge of it. I was told that 
it may chiefly be learned from the following works, which he has published, viz.: 
Concerning the New Jerusalem, Concerning Faith, and Concerning the Lord, works 
which I do not possess, neither have 1 read or seen them.' Is not this to be 
blind in the forehead, but to have eyes behind, and even these covered with 
a film .' To see and judge of writings in such a manner, and in such like terms, 
can any secular or ecclesiastical judge regard otherwise than as criminal? The 
book entitled. The Doctrine of the New Church, mentioned by the Doctor, may be 
had at Gottenburg, so tha.t if he had pleased, he might have had a sight of it. 
The Doctor blasphemes, likewise, the spiritual sense of the Word, which our 
Saviour at this time has given to be revealed, as if the same blasphemies would 
prove a hinderance to the Sacred Scriptures, which, even according to his de- 
cision, still continue to contain the principles of the knowledge of faith, religion, 
and the rei^ealed theology; although in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concern- 
ing the Sacred Scriptures, it is fully shown and demonstrated : I. That the sense 
of the letter of the Word is the basis, continent, and foundation of its spiritual 
sense, 27-36. If. That the divine truth in the sense of the latter of the Word is 
in its fullness, its sanctity, and its power, 37-49. IK. That the doctrine of the 
church is to be deduced from the literal sense of the Word, and to be confirmed 
thereby, 50-61. IV, That by ihe literal sense of the Word, there is a conjunction 
with the Lord, and a consociation vvith the angels, 62-68 ; and, further, concern- 
ing the spiritual sense of the Word, and its invaluable uses, 5-26, and Apoca- 
lypse Revealed, 200, 898, 911, and in a thousand other places. Respecting the 
other point, namely, the charging those doctrines with Socinianism, the same is 
a horrid blasphemy and untruth; forasmuch as Socinianism signifies a negation 
of the divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, when, in fact. His divinity, in this doc- 
trine of the New Church is principally confirmsd and proved, and that the Saviour 
has so fully completed the reconciliation and redemption of man, that without 
His coming no man could have been saved, see Apoc. Rev. 67, and in many 
other places ; in consequence whereof, I consider the word Socinian to be a 
scoffing and a diabolical reviling. This, with the rest of the Doctor's ' Reflec- 
tions,' may be considered in the same sense as ' the flood which the dragon cast 
out of his mouth after the woman, that he might cause her to be swallowed up 
by the flood, during the time that she was yet in the wilderness ' (Apoc, xii, 15). 
And it may come to pass, that the same which is mentioned in verse 17, may 
likewise take place : ' And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to 
make war with the remnant of her seed, who kept the commandments of God, 
and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.' That the New Jerusalem signifies the 
New Church, which is to be the bride and the wife of the Lamb, see Ayocalypse 



HIS REPLY TO DR. EKEBOM'S DEPOSITION. 147 

Revealed, 8S0, 881 ; and that this same church, undoubtedly, is coming, because 
the Lord himself has predicted it ; see Apocalypse xxi. and xxii. ; likewise 
Zechariah xi v. 7.8,9; and in the last chapter of the Apocalypse, in these words : 
' f, Jesus, have sent mine angel, to testify unto you thtse things in the churches. 
I am the root and race of David, the bright and morning star. And the spirit 
and the bride say, Come. And let him who hearelh say. Come. And let him 
who is willing, receive the water of life gratis ' (16, 17). 

" Emanuel Swedenboro. 

"Amsterdam, April 15, 1769. 

" P. S. I request this letter may be delivered to the venerable consistoiy, and 
a copy of it to the right reverend Bishop. 

" N. B. The then Bishop Erie Lamberg, president of the Consistory, was at 
that time at a Diet in Norkjoping." 



LETTER II. 

" Before I set out on my journey to Paris, which I purpose to do next week, I 
think proper to make the following addition to my foregoing ' Reply' to Dr. Eke- 
bom's 'Reflections.' It was said therein, that I have written, I. That the Holy 
Scriptures have hitherto been ill and sinistrously explained {Apoc. Rev. 1), which is 
entirely untrue, as there is nothing of the kind to be found in the passage quoted. 
II. That there is no satisfaction given for the sins of the world, which is also entirely 
untrue. III. That I rail at justification by faith alone. This is true, I allow, because 
faith alone is faith separated from charity, or from good works, and faith sepa- 
rated from charity h«.s been rejected by the imperial judgment at Stockholm, and 
afterwards by the university at Upsal, and probably, likewise by those at Lund 
and Abo. The Doctor is determined not to know, that good works, which are 
said freely and spontaneously to follow faith, and are called the fruits of faith, 
the works of the Spirit, and the works of grace, and which are performed in a 
state of justification, have agreeably to the Formula Concordia, no connexion with 
faith, and, accordingly, do not contribute at all to salvation : nay, that it Avould 
be detrimental, if they should combine and mix themselves with faith, and that 
which is without connexion, is in itself separate. Among the quotations from 
the Formula Concordice concerning the Divinity of Christ, there are some num- 
bers in my former reply erroneously set down, viz., 337, 375, ought to be 737, 
775 ; for which reason I adjoin herewith a more distinct and copious extract 
from the Formula Concordice, from the Leipsic edition, 1756, as follows : — That in 
Christ God is Man, and Man is God, 607, 765. That Christ, true God and Man, 
is in one indivisible Person, and abideth to eternity, 600, 762, 763, 840. That 
Christ, as to the Human Nature, has been raised to the omnipotent power of God, 
forasmuch as He was suen a man that the Human Nature had so close, and so in- 
effable an union and communion with the Son of God, as to become One Person, 
607. That Christ's Human Nature has been exalted to the Divine Majesty and 
Power, is known from the Council of Ephesus, and Chalcedon; next from the 
fathers, as Athanasius, Augustin, Chrysostom, Eusebius, Cyril, Eustachius, Greg- 
ory, Epiphanius, Theodoret, Basil the Great, Theophylact, Hilary, Origen, Niceph- 
orus, Nyssenius, Vigilius Leo, 840, 878. It is ^Iso confirmed from the Word in 



148 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

many places, 608, 844, 847, 852, 861, 863, 869. That Christ's Human Nature has 
received the most excellent, the greatest and supernatural properties, and the 
celestial perogatives of majesty, strength, and power, 774. Moreover, the spirit 
of all wisdom, 781. That Christ operateth in, with, and through, both natures, 
and through the human, as by the organ of Deity, 773, 779, »47. That this takes 
place by the hypostatic union, glorification, and exaltation, 774, 779. That in a state 
of humiliation, He emptied Himself, and did not put forth and manifest that 
majesty always, but when it seemed good to Him, until He put off the form of 
a servant after the resurrection, and entered into the very Divine Glory and 
Majesty, pp. 608, 764, 767. That by virtue of the hypostatic union. He wrought 
miracles even in the state of exinanition, pp. 167, 767. That Christ is our Re- 
deemer, Mediator, Head, High Priest, and King, as to both natures, 773, That 
Christ was essentially exalted to the right hand of God, according to His Human 
Nature, 608. That He is at the rigtit hand of God, that He has risen above all the 
heavens, and actually fills all things, and rules everywhere, not only as God, but 
also as man, as the prophets have prophesied concerning Him, into the posses- 
sion of which He actually came according to the Human Nature, 768. That the 
right hand of God is everywhere, and that Christ according to His Humanity 
governs all things by His presence, and holds all things under His feet, 600. 
That through the unity of the person were given to Christ, as to the Human Na- 
ture, Majesty, Glory, Omnipotence, and Omniscience, with the most inward 
dominion of all things, 737, 60S, 834; App. 147, 148. That Christ, by the per- 
sonal union and exaltation according to the flesh, being seated at the right hand 
of God, received all power in heaven and upon earth, 833. That Christ, even 
according to the Human Nature, has all power in the heavens and the earth, 775, 
779. This is confirmed by passages from the Scriptures, 775, 776, 780. That 
Christ, according to the Human Nature, is omnipotent, 3, 10, 611, 768, 783, 785; 
App. 150. That the regal office of Christ is this, that as God-man, in both na- 
tures, as King and Lord of heaven and earth. He might govern, by His inmost 
presence, all things in the kingdom of power, grace, and glory, 787, 876 ; App. 
149. That the flesh of Christ is vivifying, and that Christ possesses the power 
of vivifying according to the Human Nature, 6, 776, 777, 783 ; App. 152. That 
Christ, according to both natures, is to- be adored and worshiped, agreeably to the 
Augsburg Confession, 276 ; App. 151. That Christ overcame the devil, hell, and 
-damnation, 767, 6 13, 614, 788 ; App. 150. Should double the number of quota- 
tions from the Formula Concordice be required concerning the Person of Christ, as 
well as concerning Justification by Faith Alone, they shall be produced the next 
opportunity. 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, May 22, 1769. 

*' P S. This original letter, or a copy thereof, please to deliver to the venera- 
ble Consistory ; it might also be proper, that the right reverend Bishop should 
have one presented to him." 



HIS CORRESPONDENCE WITH DR. OETINGER. 149 

XXV. 

SWEDENBORG'S CORRESPONDENCE 

WITH 

DR. OETINGER, 

PRELATE OF MURRHARD, IN WURTEMBERG. 



Oetinger was a man of distinguished learning and piety, and highly respected by his- 
countrymen.* He was the aiithor of many works, and attained the highest dignity in 
the church ; he was appointed by his Serene Highness the Duke of Wurtemberg to the 
prelacy of Murrhard. He was one of the first in Germany who became acquainted 
with the writings of Swedenborg. He translated many things from the Arcana Calestia, 
and the Earths in the Universe. He also published an analysis of Swedenborg's Natu- 
ral Philosophy, and compared it with his Heavenly Philosophy. 

From an unpublished MS. of the life of Oetinger, written by himself. Dr. Tafel has 
extracted the following: At page 129, he says, " I wrote the second part of the Earthly 
and Heavenly Philosophy in the presence of death ; this, I thought, was to be my last 
work, but I recovered, and Swedenborg's book On Heaven and Hell came to hand, 
which I translated, and extracted from it the first part o^ Earthly and Heavenly Philos- 
ophy, and sent it, having submitted it to the censorship, to the press at Tubingen. In 
the meantime the prelacy of Murrhard became vacant. I was well aware, although I 
had been proposed as prelate ten years before, that I had many enemies, and, therefore, I 
wrote a candid letter to his Serene Highness, upon which he sent me two letters in four 
days, appointing me prelate. The book which I had written appeared afterwards, but 
the Consistory was much incensed at its appearance, and called upon me to justify my- 
self. I was at Stuttgart about twelve months, and returned again to Murrhard. I then 
devoted myself to the work entitled Philosophice Scripturance, but was again compelled 
by the Consistory to appeal to the Privy Council. The consistory interdicted me from 
publishing anything either within or without the country. Upon this, my son, a physi- 
cian, published a work, under his own name, entitled Metaphysica et Chemica. After 
this I wrote to Baron Swedenborg at Stockholm, who replied to my letters ; the corres- 
pondence may be seen in Dr. Clemm's German Theology, ^c." 

Oetinger says further, in the Biography already mentioned, " Swedenborg sent me 
his books, De Telluribus Planetarum, De Amore Conjugiali, and also his last work. He 
Vera Religione Christiana. Swedenborg also sent me some other letters, one of which 
linsertedin the translation of the Earths in the Universe."f Dr. Tafel adds, " I found 
in the year 1831, at the house of the learned Dr. Veesenmeyer, at Ulm, this very letter, 
written by Swedenborg himself, and was kindly permitted to take a perfect copy of it. "4: 
Oetinger translated the Heaven and Hell, the Earths in the Universe, and some extracts 
from the Arcana Codlestia. He also took a lively interest in the dispute which took place 
in the Consistory at Gottenburg respecting the theological writings of Swedenborg. 
Hence arose a storm of bitter animosity against this worthy man, in which he suffered 
much mental anguish. In his Biography he says many things respecting his state ol 

* See some account of Oetinger in the Intellectual Repository, Jan. 1830, pp. 1-4. 
t This letter may be seen in the New Jerusalem Magazine May, 1790, p. 3. 
t See also the same work, p. 35, where this letter is inserted. 



150 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

mind at tkis period, and how he endeavored to bring the importance of Swedenborg's 
theology and his spiritual discoveries before the world. We shall subjoin a few extracts 
from his Biography : — 

*' The Consistory," says Oetinger," was highly incensed against me, and through 
the assistance of the prelate Faber, who had for some time acted against me, 
although at first he had been one of my best friends, had induced the Privy Coun- 
cil to send me an interdict, that if Swedenborg should come into this part of 
Germany, T was not to receive him. This interdictory communication troubled 
me, and 1 appealed to his Serene Highness, who was of my opinion, that the 
Holy Scripture should be interpreted without employing worldly philosophy; 
and he said to me, that if I had a thousand persecutors they should not hurt me. 
Faber defended the opinion, which was contrary to that of the enlightened duke, 
and endeavored to refute me in a dissertation De Sensu Morali, in which he as- 
serts that the philosophy of Wolfius should be laid as the basis of juris naturcSy 
and that, consequently, 7^5 and theology should be measured and determined ac- 
cordingly, I refuted this position in my book on the Philosophy of the Ancients, 
This so much annoyed Faber that he came into the Consistory, and endeavored 
to procure measures to coerce me, but 1 remained firm, and knew that God was 
with me." 

In order to understand this, it is necessary to be known that, at that time, it 
was a subject of discussion amongst many theologians in Germany, whether 
fixed principles of philosophy should be adopted as the basis of Scriptural in- 
terpretation ; the philosophy of Wolfius was that which some theologians agreed 
to adopt. Oetinger opposed this theological movement, and maintained that 
the grundweisheit of Scripture, that is, its interior truths and evidence, should be 
the means of its interpretation. 

*' Swedenborg," says Oetinger, in another place, " is, in my estimation, the 
forerunner of a new era. That, in the kingdom of Jesus Christ upon earth, ac- 
cording to Dan. ii. 44, vii, 27, the faithful will have a faculty, by which they 
will be able to hold communion, and converse with those who are in the 
marriage of the Lamb, cannot be doubted. For according to Heb. xii. 22, the 
faithful have come to Mount Zion, and to an innumerable company of angels, 
not only in faith, but by means of the gifts of the Spirit, they can also come into 
communion with them,' and hear and see them. This gift, or this office, by 
which others, who cannot see and hear, may be instructed in the things of 
heaven, ought not to be doubted or denied in respect to Swedenborg, because 
the facts evinciug Swedenborg's communication with the world of spirits, are 
denied by nobody in Stockholm,* and these facts prove that Swedenborg's asser- 
tion is right, when he says, that he has communication with the world of 
spirits." 

" Hence," continues Oetinger, ** it may be seen, why God has, at this time, 
permitted such a man as Swedenborg to arise, and why he was educated by 
his father, a most venerable bishop, and of noble rank, so carefully in innocence, 
and ill scientific learning; all these preparations, under Providence, tended to 
fit him to pass through the most important events, which no other man has had 
to experience. As Swedenborg is the instrument of restoring the lost commu- 

* These facts were the memorablo occurrences mentioned above pp. 93-103. * 



HIS CORRESPONDENCE WITH DR. OETINGER. 151 

nion with the invisible world, that pure and unspotted life, in which we see he 
was trained and educated, was necessary. The first promise that Jesus gave to 
His disciples, was • Tkat they should see heaven open' (John i.) ; and this, we might 
reasonably expect, would be tlie first thing announced at His second commg." 

*' Since these are abominable times, when from excessive self-love, discord 
and hatred prevail, God has, in the most important matter respecting the state 
after death, and the nature of tfie inner man, raised up Swedenborg to assist us. 
Jacob Behmen appeared also some time ago, but as he was not informed, as he 
himself states, in the sciences, therefore God has raised up Swedenborg, who is 
mightily conversant with the sciences, and who, from his youth up, has led a 
pious innocent life, and who, in his labors of love, has had no eye to honor, 
rank, or wealth. This man God has prepared and chosen like Daniel, in order 
to set up, through him, an extraordinary light to this sceptical and unbelieving 
world. I believe, according to what he himself states in a letter to a friend,* that 
the Lord has appeared to him, and that his interior senses have been opened to 
see and to hear things, which we cannot see and hear. But as no manifestations 
or revelations from God can take place, but in strict agreement with the laws of 
order, by which God necessarily regulates all his operations, so in respect to 
Swedenborg; what he makes known to us, is done according to those laws of 
order, by which the relation between the visible and invisible worlds is governed. 
Now, as Swedenborg had great experience in the sciences of algebra and the 
higher mathematics, especially in cosmology, and in all these respects must be 
considered equal to Leibnitz, f he has been chosen as a suitable instrument, 
having been prepared from his youth, to make known these things to man- 
kind." 

" God may have appeared to Swedenborg in a way which we may not fully 
understand; but he is certainly a phenomenon, such as the world never saw be- 

i fore." 

" Concerning the Jure talionis, the Scripture has said but little, but Swedenborg 

I has spoken abundantly and beautifully about it." 

' •' No example of divine influences can be found so brilliant as in Sweden* 

i borg." 

We might continue these extracts from the writings of Oetinger respecting the works 

1 and character of Swedenborg, but we will conclude with one from his book entitled 

j The High Priesthood of Christ, published in 1772. At p. 47, he says, *' Swedenborg 

j was from youth innocent, pious, and exemplary, and by no means addicted to imagi- 

I nary pursuits. Geometry, algebra, and mechanics, had guarded him against everything 

I like phantastic studies. Diotrephes barked loudly against John, the beloved disciple of 

( Jesus ; and why should we wonder that Swedenborg is so misrepresented and calum- 

j niated 1 Satan has his greatest delight, and his most delicious feast, when he can set 

i theologians by the ears, and excite strife and animosity amongst them. But the Lord 

1 will bring to light that which has been concealed in darkness." 

* To Mr. Hartley. See above p. 36. 

t This assertion, coming from Oetinger, is highly important, since few were better 
acquainted with the philosophy of Leibnitz than he, as is evident from his work entitled 
Earthly and Heavenly Philosophy, in which he gives an analysis of the system of Leib- 
nitz, between whom and Swedenborg, he well knew the comparitive merits. Leibnitz 
enjoys nearly the same celebrity in Germany as Newton does in England. 



152 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

The Letters which Swedenborg wrote to Dr. Oetinger are the following : — 

LETTER I, 

To Dr. Oetinger. 

" 1 arrived this day from my voyage to England and Holland, and received the 
two letters you sent me, one of which is dated .the 13th of October, 1765, and 
for both of which I return you many thanks. There are five treatises under 
the title, Ex Auditis et Visis, that is from what I have personally heard and seen re- 
specting them, and they are as follows : 1st. The Treatise on Heaven and Hell. 
2d. On the New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine. 3d. Of the Last Judgment. 4th, 
Of the White Horse mentioned in the Revelations. 5th. Of the Earths in the Universe. 

"I this year published the work entitled The Revelations Revealed, which was 
promised in the treatise On the Last Judgment, and from all which writings it may 
be plainly seen that I converse with angels. Every person may see, that by the 
New Jerusalem is meant a new church or congregation, the doctrines and arti- 
cles of whose faith cannot shine in their true splendor, and give light to others, 
without the divine aid, because they are only figuratively described in the Reve- 
lations, that is to say, according to correspondence,- and the true doctrine of it can- 
not be published to the world, but by such as to whom the needful revelation is 
made. I can sacredly and solemnly declare, that the Lord Himself has been 
seen of me, and that he has sent me to do what I do, and for such purpose has 
he opened and enlightened the interior part of my soul, which is my spirit, so 
that 1 can see what is in the spiritual world, and those that are therein; and this 
privilege has now been continued to me for twenty-two years. But in the pre- 
sent state of infidelity, can the most solemn oath make such a thing credible, or 
to be believed by any ? Yet such as have received true Christian light and un- 
derstanding, will be convinced of the truth contained in my writings, which are 
particularly evident In the book of the Revelations Revealed. Who, indeed, has 
hitherto known anything of consideration of the true spiritual sense and mean- 
ing of the Word of God, the spiritual world, or of heaven and hell; the nature 
of the life of man, and the state of souls after the decease of the body ? Is it to 
be supposed, that these and other things of a like consequence are to be eternally 
hidden from Christians .' That many very important particulars relating to them 
are at this day revealed for the first time, is done in regard to the New Jerusalem 
and for the sake of the New Church, because the members thereof are endowed 
with a capacity to apprehend them, which others might also have, were it not 
for their weak unbelief of the possibility of such things being made known to 
any, and by them to the world. These writings of mine do not come under thr 
term of prediction, but revelations. Farewell, &c. — I remain, your most ready- 
servant, 

*' Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Stockholm, Sept. 23, 1766." 



LETTER II. 

To Dr. Oetinger. 

" You suggest a doubt in respect to Christ's having power given Him over an 
flesh, and yet the angels and heavenly beings {Angeli et Ccelites) have not flesh, hut luci^ 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. OETINGER. 153 

bodies. To this be pleased to receive kindly the following reply : That by all 
flesh, there spoken of, is meant every man, wherefore in the Word mention is 
sometimes made of all flesh, which is to denote every man. As to what con- 
cerns the bodies of the angels, they do not appear lucid, but, as it were, fleshy, 
for they are substantial and not material, and things substantial are not trans- 
lucent before the angels. Every material thing, or substance, is originally de- 
rived from what is substantial, and every man cometh into this substantiality 
when he puts off, by death, the material films or coverings, which is the reason 
why man after death is a man, but purer than before, comparatively as what is 
substantial is purer than whctt is material. That the Lord has power, not only 
over all men, but also over all angels, is evident from His own words in Mat- 
thew : ' All power is given to me in heaven, and in earth' (xxviii. 18). 

"Inasmuch as in your letter you make mention of the natural and spiritual 
sense of the Word, lest it should be supposed that I have written anything con- 
tradictory concerning those senses, I adjoin a few lines, wherein these two 
senses of the Word are described. 

" Ejianuel Swedeis'borg. 
"Amsterdam, Nov. 8, 1768." 



Concerning the Natural and Spiritual Sense of the Word. 

•' That there is an internal or spiritual sense in the Word, in its external or 
natural sense, as a diamond in its matrix, or as a beautiful infant in its swad- 
dling clothes, is a truth which has heretofore been altogether unknown in the 
Christian world, and hence also it is altogether unknown what is meant by the 
Consummation of the Age, the Coming of the Lord, the Last Judgment, and by the 
New Jerusalem, on Avhich subjects many things are spoken and predicted in the 
Word of each Testament, both Old and New. Without the unfolding and un- 
swathing of the literal sense of the Word by its spiritual sense, who can know 
intellectually what is signified by the things which the Lord predicted in Matt, 
xxiv., and also in the Revelations, and in like manner in Daniel, and in the 
Prophets, in many passages ? Make the experiment yourself, if you are so dis- 
posed, by reading those passages of the prophetical Word, which treat some- 
times of wild beasts and cattle, sometimes of forests and brakes, sometimes of 
valleys and mountains, sometimes of bats, of ochim, tziim, satyrs, &c. &c. ; try 
whether you can perceive anything divine therein, unless you believe it to lie 
concealed inwardly, inasmuch as it was inspired of God, just as a diamond lies 
concealed in its matrix, as was said above. That the diamonds, or treasures, 
which lie concealed within, are those things which the internal sense contains, 
is fully demonstrated in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem, concerning the 
Sacred Scripture, 5-26 : and in the same doctrine it is further proved, that the 
literal sense is the basis, continent, and firmament of its spiritual sense, 27-36 ; 
also, that the divine truth in the literal sense of the Word is in its fulness, in" its 
sanctity, and in its power, 37-49 ; and, likewise, that the doctrine of the church 
is to be drawn from the literal sense of the Word, and to be confirmed thereby, 
50-61 ; and, moreover, that by the literal sense of the Word, through the medium 
of its spiritual sense, there is effected conjunction with the Lord, and consocia- 
tion with the angels, 62-69. 
11 



164 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

•' To the above, I shall add somewhat new from the spiritual world. The 
rulers of the church, who flock into that world after death, are first taught con- 
cerning the Sacred Scripture, as containing a spiritual sense, which in the world 
was unknown to them, and they are also told, that the angels of heaven are in 
that sense, whilst man is in the sense of the letter ; and further, that a translation, 
or change, of the latter sense, into the former, is effected with man, whilst he 
reads the Word under holy influences, and that there is a kind of unfolding or 
unswathing, somewhat like the breaking of the shell, encompassing an almond, 
and the casting away the shell, so that the naked almond passes into heaven, 
and is received by the angels ; and also like a seed dast into the earth, and being 
there stripped of its outward coats, puts forth its germ. That seed is the Word 
in the sense of the letter, and the germ thence put forth is the spiritual sense, 
and this latter passes to the angels, but the former rests with man: still, how- 
ever, that seed remains with man in his mind, as in its ground, and in time pro- 
duces its germ, -and fructifies it, if man, by the seeds of life, which are the truths 
of faith, and the good things of charity, is joined with the Lord, and thereby con- 
sociated with the angels. The above rulers are further admonished to receive 
thoroughly this belief, that the Word in its bosom is spiritual, because it is di- 
vine ; and that unless they receive this belief, they may be seduced by satans, 
even to deny the sanctity of the Word ; in which case the church disappears 
amongst them. This further argument is also urged with them, that if they do 
not believe the internal sense of the Word, the Word may finally come to ap- 
pear to them as an unpolished and unconnected writing, or as a book full of all 
heresies, inasmuch as from the literal sense, as from a kind of lake, heretical 
principles of every sort may be drawn forth and confirmed. Those afterwards, 
who believe the internal sense of the Word, are received into companies of an- 
gelic spirits, who are in process of time elevated into heaven and become an- 
gels ; but those w^ho do not believe, are removed apart to companies of spirits, 
who in process of time, are cast into hell, and become satans. They are called 
satans in hell, who in the world had falsified the truth of the Word, and who, 
in consequence thereof, had imbibed false principles, insomuch that they could 
no longer see anything of truth." 



LETTER III. ; 
To Dr. Oetinger. 

" 1. To your interrogation, Whether there is occasion for any sign, that I am sent 
by the Lord, to do what I do 7 I answer, that at this day no signs or miracles will 
be given, because they compel only an external belief, but do not convince the 
internal. What did the miracles avail in Egypt, or among the Jewish nation, 
who, nevertheless, crucified the Lord ? So, if the Lord was to appear now in 
the sky, attended with angels and trumpets, it would have no other effect than 
it had then. (Luke xvi. 29, 30, 31). The sign, given at this day, will be an illus- 
tration, and thence a knowledge and reception of the truths of the New Church ; some 
speaking illustration of certain persons may likewise take place ; this works more 
effectually than miracles. Yet one token may perhaps still be given. 

" IL You ask me, Jf I have spoken with the Apostles ? To which I reply, I have 



HIS LETTERS TO DR. OETINGER. 155 

spoken one whole year with Paul, and also of what is mentioned in the Epistle 
to the Romans iii. 28. I have spoken three times with John: once with 
Closes ; and I suppose a hundred times with Luther, who owned to me that, 
contrary to the warning of an angel, he had received the doctrine of salvation 
by faith alone, merely with the intent that he might make an entire separation 
from popery. But with the angels I have conversed these twenty-two years 
past, and daily continue so to do : with them the Lord has given me association, 
though there was no occasion to mention all this in my writings. Who would 
have believed, and would not have said, show some token that I may beheve ? 
and this every one would have said who did not see the like. 

" IlL Why from a philosopher I have been chosen to this office ? Unto which I give 
for answer: to the end that the spiritual knowledge, which is revealed at this 
day, might be reasonably learned, and naturally understood ; because spiritual 
truths answer unto natural ones, inasmuch as these originate and flow from 
them, and serve as a foundation for the former. That what is spiritual is simi- 
lar unto, and corresponds with what is human or natural, or belonging to the 
terrestrial world, may be seen in the treatise On Heaven and Hell, 87-1 15. I was, 
on this account, by the Lord, first introduced into the natural sciences, and thus 
prepared from the year 1710-1744, when heaven was opened unto me. Every 
one is morally educated and spiritually regenerated by the Lord, by being led 
from what is natural to what is spiritual. Moreover, the Lord has given unto 
me a love of spiritual truth, that is to say, not with any view to honor or profit, 
but merely for the sake of truth itself; for every one who loves truth, merely for 
the sake of truth, sees it from the Lord, the Lord being the Huay and the truth' 
(John xiv. 6). But he who professes the love of truth for the sake of honor or 
gain, sees truth from his own self-hood, and to see from one's self, is to 
see falsity. Falses confirmed shut the church, but truths rationally confirmed, 
open it. What man can otherwise comprehend spiritual things, which enter 
into the understanding ? The doctrinal notion received in the Protestant Church, 
viz., that in theological matters, reason shall be held captive under obedience to 
faith, locks up the church; what can open it, but an understanding enlightened 
by the Lord ? Revelations Revealed, 914. 

" I am very sorry that 3''ou have suffered persecution for translating the work 
On Heaven and Hell into German ; but what suffers at this day more than truth 
itself? How few there are who see it! nay, who will see it; therefore be not 
weary, but indefatigable in defending the truth. 

*' Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Stockholm, Nov. 11, 1766." 



1:^6 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

XXVI. 

EXTRACT OF A LETTER 

FROM 

DR. BEYER TO DR. OETINGER^ 

AT MURRHARD. 



Dr. Oetinger corresponded with Dr. Beyer, to whom he stated several objections re- 
specting Swedenborg's writings ; the following letter contains these objections and their 
refutation. These objections, it is evident from what Oetinger afterwards wrote in his 
different works, and especially in that entitled '* The High Priesthood of Christ," (see 
above pp. 150-151,) were to a great extent, if not entirely, removed. Dr. Beyer's 
letter is as follows : 

" I could wish that you and Swedenborg, as being two eminently learned and 
honest men, entertained the same opinions ; but notwithstanding the difference 
which subsists between you on theological points, your indefatigable and unal- 
terable love for truth, Vviiich shines so conspicuously, gives me an assurance 
that it will very shortly be removed ; yea, that you will even accede to Swe- 
denborg's sentiments with a full assent, should you be pleased, and would your 
duties permit you, to take a deeper and more general view of all his writings. 

"For myself, whilst I am reading, neither his name, nor the dignity of his 
person, passes before my eyes, which he indeed himself wishes to extinguish, 
in order that the reader may only hold in honor the holiness of the subjects on 
which he treats : and I am no longer led to inquire, by what deep attainments 
in sciences and philosophy he had arrived at celebrity before the year 3745, but 
my whole endeavor is, to acquire a rational judgment of his theosophical doc- 
trines, according to the true Biblical theosophy. Besides, it is impossible to see 
divine things, such as all those which relate to the kingdom of the Lord, heaven, 
and the church, in any other than a divine, that is, heavenly light. Such things 
can receive no light from the light of nature, or the sun of the natural world, or 
as we may say, from the pomp of all natural sciences, which fall under the 
name of philosophy, and the merely human understanding, be they as pure as 
possible. Undoubtedly, what is superior can flow into what is inferior, but not 
vice vcrsd ,• and the truths derived from heaven can illustrate and correct the 
truths derived from the world, but not these the former. We certainly stand in 
need of illumination from the Lord and Saviour through the heavens, to be ena- 
bled to understand what is spiritual and celestial, which may then be confirmed 
with man, through rational and natural sciences, provided we do not believe 
that power and strength are derived from the latter. I also remember that Swe- 
denborg nowhere depends, in his theological writings, upon the scientific phi- 
losophical principles he had learned before, or argues from them ; still less does 
he draw forth his arguments from mechanical philosophy ; from the motion, rest, 
figure, position, or properties of matter; from natural phenomena; nor does he 
defend the nature and property of spiritual things by them, forasmuch as they 



LETTER FROM DR. BEYER TO DR OETINGER. 157 

are as distinct as the poles from natural things, although they coincide in ap- 
pearance ; at the same time that lie has himself a knowledge of this branch of 
philosophy, and strongly recommends the pursuit of it to others. He says, that 
he is indebted for all his theosophical doctrines, and pJl the clear explanation of 
the holy prophecies, to the Word of God alone, and to the illumination of the 
Lord. But in proportion as we form a more imperfect view of these things — the 
more we are careless in suffering the true knowledge of God to obtain a right form 
in our hearts — and the less we ineditate upon the infinite wisdom and divine 
holiness of the Word, unendowed with a right conception of it, the further we 
are removed from the science of all sciences, which is called the science of cor- 
respondences. 

" An illumination comes from the Lord our God ; the Word of enlightening 
wisdom is the truest mirror : the science of correspondences supports the spir- 
itual sight, a sight which cannot be dispensed with. What our views therefore 
ought to be, respecting these three fundamental points, may be clearly learned 
from The New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrines, 280-310, and 249-266; only let 
us not spare the trouble to examine more deeply other individual important pas- 
sages from the Arcana Ccelestia, along with the peculiar treatise on the Doctrine of 
the New Jerusalem concerning the Lord, and concerning the Sacred Scriptures. Re- 
specting the science of correspondences, it is not probable that any person can 
conceive any idea of them, who thinks it a labor to acquire an intimate acquaint- 
ance with the treatise. On Heaven and Hell, 87-115; as well as the remarkable 
passages in the Arcana Codestia, 2987, and the follov/ing numbers, and especially 
the general idea of them, 7550. Being therefore persuaded, from the high 
esteem in which you hold everything that is divine, that you wall spare no pains, 
be they ever so great, to maintain the truth as it is presented to us in unshaken 
dignity, I proceed, and with 3^our approbation, more confidently, to examine, 
with becoming modesty, the objections you have advanced against his writ- 
ings. 

" 1. You say that Assessor Swedenborg had not been called to give an interpret- 
ation of the Scripture, but to make known in these our days, the things he has 
seen and heard in the spiritual world. 

" 2. You attribute to him that he does not follow the literal meaning. 

" 3. You think that he leads to a doubtful and uncertain explanation of most 
passages in the Scriptures. 

'* 4. That he rests more upon the science of correspondences, than upon the 
clearest expressions of the Sacred Word. 

" 5. That he invents things repugnant to the declaration of Scripture, respect- 
ing the White Horse and the White Horses, the Resurrection from the Dead, 
the Last Judgment, the New Heaven and the New Earth, and the Holy City, the 
New Jerusalem. 

" 6. That he offends mightily against the analogy of faith, and teaches the 
doctrine of the Trinity, not as the apostles have done, but according to the 
Schwenkfeldian method. 

" 7. That he diminishes the authority of Paul, by not ascribing to his writings 
the title of the Word of God. 

" 8. That he is not introduced to celebrity by signs and vv^onders, at least he 
does not brmg them forth as open credentials, and that the divine seal is want- 
ing. 



158 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

" 9. That the prophecy of the New Jerusalem, which within two years was 
to have been fulfilled, is fefuted by its non- accomplishment. 

" 10. That the interpretation of the Apocalypse seems to have been introduced 
in favor of the new invented church. 

" The above are nearly all the general points of objection, which I find in your 
writings advanced against Swedenborg ; after I have laid open to you in truth 
and simplicity what I have to oppose to each of these objections, you will judge 
yourself, whether they justly or unjustly deprive him of his credit. 

" I. In a conversation, during which I asked Swedenborg many questions, I 
received from him, in the year 1767, amongst others this answer : ' That it had 
been forbidden him to apply to the reading of dogmatical and systematical 
writings, until the heavens were opened to him, and for this reason, because by 
the study of such writings, groundless opinions and inventions might easily in- 
sinuate themselves into the mind, which might in process of time be hard to 
eradicate. Therefore,' says he, ' when the heavens were opened to me, I was 
obhged to learn the Hebrew language, as well as the correspondences in which 
the whole Bible is written ; which has been a motive for my reading the Word 
of God more frequently ; and as the Word of God is the fountain from whence 
the whole of theology must be drawn, I acquired thereby a capacity to receive 
instructions from the Lord, who is the Word itself.' He has likewise, in a letter 
from Stockholm, dated 14th November, 1769, given me a description of the state 
of his earliest youth. ' From my fourth year,' says he, ' to my tenth, I was con- 
stantly engaged in meditations about God, salvation, and the spiritual affections 
and states of men ; I have often uttered things at which my father and mother 
marvelled, who would say, that angels altogether spake through me : from my 
sixth to my tenth year, it was my delight to discourse with the clergy concern- 
ing faith, that love is the life thereof, and that the love which gives that life is 
love towards our neighbor ; that God gives faith to every one, but only those ac- 
cept of it who practise that love : at that time I knew of no other faith, than 
that God created nature, that He preserves it, and gives wisdom and understand- 
ing to men ; of that doctrinal assumed faith, which says that God the Father 
applies the righteousness of His Son to whomsoever and whensoever He wills, 
even to those who have not repented, I knew nothing at that time, and if 1 had 
known it, as I do now, it would have been far beyond my understanding.'* 
Hence it may be accounted for, in my opinion," continues Dr. Beyer, " how an 
assessor of the Metallic College can maintain the character of a theologian, if 
his indisputable erudition be also taken into consideration; and a theologian 
too, who is free from prejudice, and far more enlightened than the unintelligible 
Behmen. 

" If the theology, which is now-a-days in vogue, should be stripped of all in- 
ventions and conclusions from reasoning, what, pray, would there be left re- 
maining ? 

" Let the history of doxjtrines be consulted, and an inquiry be instituted, at 
what periods of the world, under what opportunities, and under what founders, 
theology has grown to its height; and it will be immediately seen, that most of 
the prevailing doctrines are modern, and that they have been extended and 

* See the letters adduced above pp. 123-137. 



LETTER FROM DR. BEYER TO DR. OETINGER. 159 

;5prea{l abroad through human authority, grounded upon perplexed reasonmgs. 
It is, therefore, better to forget them, or to lose sight of them, than to acquire 
them; yea, while we hold any of them in esteem, the true doctrine is altogether 
denied admittance ; wherefore Swedenborg, agreeably to the private communi- 
cation which he imparted to me, and which I have above related, did himself 
derive from the Word alone, under the instruction of the Lord, those doctrines 
which are taught in heaven ; and if he does understand them, and has the felicity 
to read also in heaven that Word, which is there preserved, and which corres- 
ponds with our Word as to every particular (for correspendences are natural 
truths and speculums of celestial things,) in the sense which is adapted to the 
celestial spirits {Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, 70-75, likewise Last Judgment, 57), 
can there be any apprehension, but that he may assuredly be a true interpreter 
of the Scriptures? When you say you consider him as one who is constantly 
advancing his visions, or rather memorable relations, 1 do willingly admit it. But 
in the Arcana Cadestia, 1967, and elsewhere, passages which deserve your at- 
tention, give a satisfactory information of the difference which subsists between 
a prophet and a visionary; if you please you may add to the above also 1806, 
1786; from The Divine Providence, ISi ; and from The Heaven and Hell, 76, 2i9. 
The inmost or celestial meaning of the Word, is itself the right doctrine of the 
church ; the Word yields the doctrine, and the doctrine is the whole of the 
Word : now this cannot be taught better, by any means, than through a seer, 
forasmuch as it cannot be seen without an especial illumination, which a seer 
enjoys above others, his sight being opened by the Lord into the light of heaven. 
" IL I do not know that any man ever treated the subject of the literal sense 
of the Scriptures as of greater holiness than the author in question; we may, 
therefore, directly and openly meet the accusation with which he is attacked, 
as one who speaks meanly and slightly of the literal meaning of the Scriptures, 
and, consequently, has committed errors. In the Arcana Codestia, 705, he proves, 
in a masterly manner, that the very words of the Scripture have been inspired. 
In the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, concerning the Sacred Scriptures, which is pro- 
fessedly a work devoted to this new inquiry, he proves, with the most compre- 
hensive and unshaken arguments, in my opinion, that the literal meaning is the 
basis upon which the wliole superstructure of the celestial and spiritual mean- 
ing of the Word rests, 37 ; that in the literal meaning, divine truth is to be found 
in its fulness, holiness, and power, 50; that the doctrine of the church must be 
derived frorh the literal sense, and be confirmed thereby, 53; that through the 
literal meaning of the Word, a conjunction is to be obtained with the Lord and 
consociation with the angels ; and in 80, that in each there is a close com- 
munion of the Lord with the church, and thence a conjunction of good with 
truth. Let the subject be only closely investigated, and not superficially looked 
into. In the same manner I should wish to be considered and properly weighed 
the Arcana Ccdestia, 1400, 1644,6222, 9407 ; Apocalypse Revealed, 1 ; not to mention 
other passages which are quoted from the Arcana Ccclestia, in the Neiu Jerusalem 
and its Heavenly Doctrines, 262. It is therefore manifest, that Swedenborg does 
not reject and despise, as he is so strongly charged with doing, the diligence 
necessary to be used in laboring to attain the knowledge of the literal sense of 
the Word, as if the same were useless ; so far from it, that he has not only ap- 
proved of that earnest application by his own example, but even has recom- 



160 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

mended it, in the passages that I have referred to above : for the purer and 
clearer the vessel is, out of which we drink a generous cordial, the more grate- 
ful and effectual will that cordial prove ; and the more accurately a man is in- 
structed in Holy Writ, agreeably to philology,* or a correct knowledge of the 
Sacred Text in its letter, or literal meaning, the more he is brought into a capa- 
city to apprehend, with greater certainty, perfection and clearness, the true mean- 
ing of any passage of Scripture which presents itself. As to my genuine opin- 
ion upon this subject, it may be seen from a short discourse upon the twofold 
method of interpreting the Sacred Scriptures, which I annex to this letter by- 
way of appendix. 

" III. With respect to the difficulty, which, dear and reverend Sir, so much 
affects you, namely, that Swedenborg, in some passages, has taught that the 
literal sense perishes as a shell, without use, and that thereby the author con- 
tradicts himself; the manner in which we are to understand this, v/ill be made 
clear to our satisfaction by a diligent consideration of 1871, in the Arcana Cceles- 
tia, taken in their connexion with what I have said above, and what I have 
further to remark. In the other life, where man is a spirit, the natural and 
material ideas, which derived their origin from the literal sense, which sounds 
terrestrial and worldly, perish, and do not appear again, forasmuch as the inter- 
nal, spiritual, and celestial, meaning succeeds tliem, which is accommodated to 
the nature of spirits ; and even in this life, while man fixes his attention upon 
the light of heaven, he does not so much observe the literal words and forms of 
expression of the Scriptures. This circumstance also takes place in private and 
general conversation, when ignorant and simple people count words, but the 
wise insist chiefly upon the purport and meaning of the speaker: some will re- 
count verbatim the fine and ornamented expressions, while others despise, and 
even forget, the phraseology, but retain and weigh the importance of the subject. 
The wiser a man is, the less solicitous he is about words ; it becomes a prudent 
man, carefully to weigh the things themselves, and not to adhere solely to the 
externa], that is, the literal form of the discourse; — how much more, then, does 
it behove that man so to do who looks above nature. Hence it is evident, that the 
literal sense of the Word stands in analogy to the state of the inhabitants of the 
respective worlds. On this occasion, it may not be useless to consider and 
weigh with proper attention, the Doctrine of the Neio Jerusalem concerning the 
Sacred Scriptures, 65, Q>Q ; also Arcana Ca^lestia, 2395, and Concerning the Inter- 
course between the Soul and the Body, 12. The chief obstacle which prevents most 
of the learned from thinking and speaking with proper accuracy of the letter of 
the Scripture, is undoubtedly this, that they dispute with too much insipidity, 
and disparage the divine Word and truth, which chiefly originates in their igno- 
rance of the spiritual nature of things, because they are misled through the 
materiality of their ideas ; but if we give a thorough consideration to the Doctrine 
of the Sacred Scn^j^wre above-mentioned, and withal consult the Arcana Cailestia, 
2763, 7055, 9094, with the Heaven and Hell, 254, and the Apocalypse Revealed, 945, 
we shall be struck with such an astonishment at the Sacred Scripture, as to ac- 
knowledge how very wrong it is to startle so much at writings similar in their 
nature. 

* la the Intellectual Repository/ it is '' i^hiloso2}hy ," but this is a mistake : in the origi- 
nal it \?.2}hilology. 



LETTER FROM DR. BEYER TO DR. OETINGER. 161 

"IV. This consideration relieves me from the necessity I should otherwise be 
under, of saying something respecting the science of correspondences, as being 
highly necessary for the interpretation of the divine prophecies ; nor vi^ill it cost 
any man much labor, to see into the meaning of the Word, divested of its mate- 
rial clothing; for example, how the words, house, city, Jerusalem, and others, do 
and can contain something internal, as oil within the fruit ; I say it v/ill not cost 
any man much labor, who will not esteem it unworthy of him to give a tho- 
rough reading to those demonstrations, contained in the small volume on The 
White Horse, 1-5, and the Apocalypse Revealed, from the beginnmg to the end, and 
especially 907. 

" V. Respecting the Last Judgment, and Swedenborg's explanation of the 
New Heaven and the New Earth, his work on these subjects, published in 1757, 
with its continuation in 1763, presents to us a sound knowledge concerning 
them. As to the doctrine of the resurrection, he everywhere sets at rest the 
acute understanding upon that subject, and that by argurhents which he derives 
from the nature of both worlds : an intellect Avhich extends itself above the 
world and the senses, sees. very easily that his sentiments are by no means con- 
trary to the Scripture, but, on the contrary, do altogether coincide with it. 

" Vr. But more important seems to be the charge, which you do not hesitate 
to bring against Swedenborg, namely, that he pays no regard to the analogy of 
faith, and in his doctrine respecting the most Holy Trinity, does not hold with 
the apostles, but with Schwenkfeld. This, I must allow, is a very great and a 
very important error, which would eclipse every other excellence, if it were not 
visible that this charge cannot be attached to Swedenborg, and that the very 
way in which he unfolds this point is sufficient of itself to clear him from it. It 
may be admitted that the Schwenkfeldian doctrine, as being more easy to 
amend, may have the pre-eminence over others, but at the same time I believe 
it will require no great penetration to discover that Schwenkfeld and Sweden- 
borg do not entertain the same principles. I wash, however, you would take 
the trouble to learn from my small treatise respecting the plan of St. John's 
writings, which I have annexed to this letter, that Swedenborg's doctrine on this 
point is justly held to be apostolic. 

" VII. But you, reverend Sir, and your much esteemed colleague, Mr. Seitz, 
suppose that oifr great author has committed a blameable error respecting the 
sacred authority of Paul, by not acknowledging his and the other apostolic 
writings to be canonical, by refusing them the dignity of the Divine Word ; this 
will be best cleared up, by a letter of Swedenborg himself, which he wrote to 
me from Amsterdam, the 15th of April, 1766, as follows :— ' With regard to the 
writings of Paul and the other apostles, I have not given them a place in my 
Arcana Calestia, because they are dogmatic writings merely, and not written in 
the style of the Word, as are those of David, of the prophets, of the evangelists, 
and of the Revelation of John ; the style of the Word consists, throughout, in 
correspondences, and thence has a direct and immediate communication with 
heaven {Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scripture, 113); but 
the style of these dogmatic writings of Paul, and the other apostles, being differ- 
ent, their communication is only mediate or indirect. The reason of this diver- 
sity of style is, that as the rules and tenets of the Christian Church were to be 
formed from these writings of the apostles, the style used in the Word would 



162 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

not have been proper for the purpose ; which reqmred plain and simple lan- 
guage, suited to the capacity of all readers. Nevertheless, the writings of the 
apostles are to be regarded as excellent books, and to be held in very high 
esteem, inasmuch as they insist on the two essential articles of charity and faith, 
in the same manner as the Lord Himself has done in the gospels, and in the 
Revelation of John ; as will appear evidently to any one who studies those 
writings with attention. In my Apocalypse Revealed, I have pointed out that pas- 
sage (Romans iii. 28), which has been, so misunderstood, and so imperfectly 
explained, as to have given rise to that erroneous doctrine of justifying faith, 
so fatally introduced into the Reformed churches.' Let us now judge of this 
charge alleged against him. In truth, I could more readily and speedily do 
away with many of the errors with which he is reproached, and from which 
he must be freed, if you, reverend Sir, would allow me to introduce, instead of 
my own arguments, Swedenborg's own defence, as exhibited in his writings, 
for surely there never was a man who wrote in such agreement with Scripture 
and reason. 

VIII. " Miracles and prophecies carry no proofs of an enlightening conviction ; 
besides we dare not look for them at this period of the world. To satisfy our- 
selves upon this point, let us examine Matt. xii. 32, 39; xvi. 4; Mark viii. 11, 
12 ; Luke xii. 5, 7 ; John xx. 29, and what Swedenborg himself says in his An- 
gelic Wisdom concerning the Divine Providence, 129, 135, and Conjugial Love, 535. 
To me it appears that the most divine seal, and the one most suitable to the 
state of all men, respecting Swedenborg's case, is this, that his principles har- 
monize with sound reason, and that a lover of his writings will find his way 
cleared by their means from so many doubts, so many contradictions, and so 
many doctrines revolting to sound reason. Truth, as far as it deserves this 
name, cannot but be comprehensible and in agreement with itself, if we are 
disposed to view and consider it in its own ground, and in its own order; but 
who can reach those higher truths — I mean those divine, and consequently, 
hidden ones — without a revelation from God ? These Swedenborg has brought 
to light, and by no means ascribes them to his own researches, as several pas- 
sages in his writings clearly prove ; for example. Angelic Wisdom concerning the 
Divine Providence, 135, and the latter part of the preface to the Apocalypse Revealed; 
also in the work concerning Conjugial Love, 532 : and surely mankind never re- 
ceived the revelation of heavenly and divine truths with greater marks of cer- 
tainty than the present ; if, therefore, they are not accepted, when they are now 
so rationally presented, it cannot be expected that their acceptance can be ac- 
complished by the assistance of miracles and prophecies ; for how can heavenly 
doctrine become ours, if it be not accepted with our will and understanding ? 
That Swedenborg has knowledge of hidden occurrences, has been proved by a 
few well attested instances, but he is no ways disposed to avail himself of them 
to procure assent and credibility to his writings, 

" IX. And further, reverend Sir, I would not wish you to take Swedenborg's 
declaration, in the conclusion of his work upon Conjugial Love, respecting the 
future publication of his doctrines, as if thereby he meant to set himself up for 
a prophet, and to maintain that in the course of two years the New Church 
would be established. It is the doctrhie of that church, to which be alludes, 
and which he promised in two years should be published, which accordingly 



LETTER FROM DR. BEYER TO DR. OETINGER. 163 

took place.* For in a letter which he wrote to me from Amsterdam on the 20th 
of April last, he mentions as follows : — * I wonder that yonr suit and controversy- 
still continue at Gottenburg, against which I will urge a complaint at the next 
Diet, when I shall transmit the Universal Theology of the New Heaven and the New 
Church, which will appear in print at the end of June. I will send two copies to 
each member of the Diet, and request that they may appoint from all the re- 
spective orders, an assembly of deputies to give their final decision.' 

" But previous to this, he wrote me a letter from Amsterdam, dated the 15th of 
April, 1769, wherein he informs me, that he had often been questioned there, 
respecting the New Church, and his answer to the inquiries was, that it will 
increase by little and little in proportion as the doctrine of justification and im- 
putation gradually lose ground, which probably will take place in consequence 
of the treatise entitled, A Summary Exposition of the Doctrine of the New Church. 
It is known that the Christian Church did not gain an immediate ascendancy 
after the Resurrection of Christ, but increased by degrees: and in this manner 
the words of the Revelation' are lo be understood : ' The woman did fly into 
the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, 
from the face of the serpent ' (Apoc. xii. 14). The serpent and the dragon is the 
false doctrine. 

" I will leave it now to the judgment of candid minds (amongst whom I 
reckon and respect yourself, reverend Sir, with your son-in-lavir Mr, Seitz, and 
the sincere Karg, to whom I beg my respects), whether they can regard the 
New Church, to which the whole Revelation of John refers, as a Swedenbor- 
gian invention, or not rather undoubtedly consider it as a Avork of the finger 
of God and our Lord, and as a church which is to be looked for with the most 
earnest desire. 

" What man could invent such things of himself, asks Swedenborg in his 
Continuation of the Last Judgment, 7 ; and, accordingly, when I shall have heard 
that what I have now written, though too long for a letter, yet, considering the 
importance of the matter, too short, has not displeased you, though in all the 
points I may not have given full satisfaction, I shall count it not a very small 
gain. 

" Since Dr. Rosen, who is at Stockholm, and myself, have not in express terms 
renounced the Swedenborgian doctrines to the king, our affair is consequently 
before the council of state, where it is to be further investigated and judged. 
The illustrious author, Swedenborg, wrote to me from Stockholm as follows : — ' I 
know that the Lord Himself, our Saviour, will protect his church, especially 
against those who are not willing to enter by the true door into the fold, that is, 
into heaven, who are called thieves and murderers, so says the Lord Himself, 
" He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other 



* This will be better understood when the reader is informed, that at the end of the 
work on Conjugial Love, E. S. gave a list of the theological works previously published 
by him, and concludes with saying, ''Intra biennium videbitis doctrinam JVovce Eccle- 
sicB .% Domino prcedictce in Apocalipsi, xxi. xxii., in plenitudine ;" that is, " In two years 
you will see the doctrine of the New Church foretold by the Lord in the Apocalypse, 
xxi. xxii., in its fulness," or " at large ;" alluding to the publication of the work entitled 
True Christian Religion, containing the Universal Theology of the New Church. That a 
learned man should have construed this notice into a prediction of the speedy reception 
of the New Church doctrine is not a little extraordinary. 



164 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

way, the same is a thief and a robber. I am the door : by Me if an^'* man enter 
in, he shall be saved " (John x. 1,9). I have been told from the Lord, through 
an angel from heaven, that I may securely sleep upon my pillow during the 
nights, which are to be understood to mean the darkness in which the world at 
present lies with respect to the church.' 

" But this may be enough for the present ; farewell, my dear Sir : as a man 
that loves the truth above all things, continue your affection towards me, who 
am likewise a worshiper of truth. — I am your humble servant, 

" Gabriel Andrew Beyer. 
"Gottenburg, June 15, 1771." 



XXVIl. 
SWEDENBORG'S LETTER 

TO 

DR. MENANDER, ARCHBISHOP OF SWEDEN.' 



"Most Reverend Dr.,&c. 

*' I have the pleasure of sending you a small work which I published in my 
youth, on a new method of finding the longitude both by sea and land, by lunar 
observations, t a work which has just been re-published at Amsterdam, and 
which has been submitted to the examination of the learned societies and acad- 
emies. You will greatly oblige by forwarding a copy of it to the professor of 
astronomy at Abo, in order that if he find this method suited to his genius, and 
worthy of his application, he may put it in practice. In foreign countries seve- 
ral persons at present employ this method of calculating the ephemerides by 
pairs of stars, and a great advantage has already been experienced from those 
which have been made for some years past. 

"The Apocalypse is now explained, or rather revealed, but I have not yet 
had an opportunity of sending to your reverence any copies of it, and also to 
the library. Please to inform me, to whom I shall entrust it here, in order to 
send it to you at Stockholm. 

" Several persons are now occupied in examining whether this is actually the 
Consummation of the Age, and at the same time the Coming of the Lord, and 
the Commencement of the New Church, which the Lord will establish. There 
are those who believe that the present faith, which is a faith in God the Father 
for the sake of the Son, is the very faith which saves man ; but it is demon- 

* This letter was first published in 1785, in the French Translation of Swedenborg's 
work entitled, Intercourse between the Soul and the Body. (See Dr. Tafel's Documents 
concerning the Life of Swedenborg, p. 33i.) The date is not given; but as it was 
evidently written immediately after the publication of A])ocalypse Revealed, which ap- 
peared at Amsterdam in 17(50, the letter was most probably written in that year. 

t The title of this work is, Methodus nova inveniendi Longitudinis Locorum Terra 
marique, ope Lunce, which during the author's lifetime passed through three editions. 
See above p, 28. 



HIS LETTER TO DR. MENANDER. 165 

strated in The Apocalypse Revealed, that this faith has destroyed the church, and 
that it has abolished religion, and that consequently it has so entirely laid waste 
and consumed everything that constitutes divine worship, that there is no longer 
any genuine goodness and truth in the church, and that the works which are 
called the fruits of this faith are nothing else but the ' eggs of the cockatrice' men- 
tioned in Isa. lix. 5. They, therefore, who have confirmed in themselves this 
faith with its ' spidefs web,' and who believes that the good works which they 
do, are the fruits of this faith, are grossly deceived, and are in a kind of deli- 
rium from which they cannot be withdrawn but by renouncing the confirma- 
tions of this faith, and by adopting the genuine faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, 
who is the only Object of love and worship, in whom is the Father, for ' whoso 
seeth Him, seeth the Father: But concerning this faith, I refer you to the little work 
entitled The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning Faith, 34-37. 

" The falsities of the faith prevailing at the present day are the following : 
L That the Lord has taken away the damnation of the law : whereas he has not 
taken away a single point, indeed, every one will be judged according to his 
works, as Paul asserts in Rom. ii. 13, and in 2 Cor. v. 10, and in other passages. 
But the Lord has taken away damnation in general, that is, subjugated the pow- 
ers of hell, by His coming into the world, without which ' no flesh could have been 
saved: II. That the Lord has fulfilled the law is, indeed, a truth, for by that 
means He alone has been made justice and righteousness, but by that he does 
not deliver man from the obligation of the law [of the ten commandments], 
for the Lord fulfils it daily in those, who shun evils as sins, and who in worship 
address Him alone ; for those who shun certain sins, Vv/hich they discover in 
themselves, are kept in the intention of shunning all sins as soon as they come 
to their knowledge. III. That the merits of the Lord are imputed to man, which 
doctrine is maintained at the present day, is an entire impossibility ; the merits 
of the Lord are in general two — first, that of having subjugated the hells, and, 
second, that of having glorified his humanity, or of having made it divine ; 
these merits could not possibly be imputed to any man, for they are infinite 
and divine ; but by them the Lord has acquired the power of saving all who 
come unto Him, who address their worship and prayers to Him, and who ex- 
amine themselves, and shun all evils they experience in themselves as sins 
against God. IV. It is an error to address God the Father, and to supplicate Him 
to have mercy for the sake of his Son, and to send His Holy Spirit; this mode 
of worship and of supplication is directly contrary to the truth, for the truth 
teaches us to address the Lord alone, in whom dwelleth the Father, and through 
whom only can the Father be approached and w^orsliiped ; moreover, the com- 
mon mode of supplicating the Father for the sake of the Son, involves a clear 
and distinct idea of three gods, and gives rise to the belief that the Father, Son, 
and Holy Spirit are three separate and distinct divine beings ; if also it is asserted 
that by the Son His Humanity is understood, then concerning the Lord a di- 
vided idea is entertained, or an idea of two distinct beings. V. The assertion 
that man is justified by this faith alone, provided he have it with assurance and 
confidence, is absolutely false; a plain proof of this, without adducing any 
others, may be seen in Romans ii. 10. In such a faith there is neither truth nor 
goodness, and consequently nothing of the church, nor of religion ; for it is the 
truth of doctrine which makes the church, and the good of life which constitutes religion 



166 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

VI. They say, moreover, that good works, or the goods of charity, are the fruits 
of this faith, whilst at the same time, not a single writer on theology has ever 
yet found the connexion which this faith has with good works ; yea, it is pos- 
itively asserted, that good works cannot even preserve or support this faith, 
and that they are only moral and civil actions, which do not in the least con- 
tribute to the salvation of the soul, VII. That the saying of Paul, in Romans iii. 
28, on which the theology of the present day, as to salvation, is founded, is 
falsely understood, I have clearly demonstrated in The Apocalypse Revealed, 417. 

"Besides these enormous errors, there are also an infinity of others, which I 
omit to mention here, by which it clearly appears, that if any one produces the 
fruits of such a faith, he really produces the ' cockatrice's eggs,' mentioned in Isa. 
lix. 5. For it is taught in the doctrines of the New Church that faith can never 
produce the goods, or good works of charity, as a tree produces its fruits, but 
that the truths which are called the truths of faith teach us how we ought to think of God, 
and how we ought to act towards our neighbor, and that charity receives these truths in 
good works, as the fruit receives the sap and juices of the tree ; consequently, the fruit, 
or the good works, which are said to accompany the present faith, of which we 
have been speaking, have no other sap or juices than those contained in the 
confirmations of what is false, and these falsities are'contained in the supposed 
good works which are said to accompany that faith ; of this, however, man is 
ignorant, but the angels perceive and know it very well. — I have the honor to 
be, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg." 



XXVIII. 

SWEDENRORG'S LETTERS 

TO 

THE SWEDISH AMBASSADOR, 

AND TO 

THE SECRETARY OF STATE. 



To his Excellency the [Swedish] Ambassador. 

«« I passed the winter at Amsterdam, and during that period published an ex- 
plication of St. John's Revelation, entitled Apocalypsis Revelata, containing secrets 
hitherto unrevealed. Messrs. Howen and Zoon are acquainted with the captain 
who has the care of them. Of this work I have sent two copies to the Cardinal 
de Rohan, two to the Royal Society of Sciences, two to our Secretary of State, 
and one for the Royal Library. In the same work are inserted various memorable 
relations of my intercourse with the spiritual world : they are separated from the 
text of the work by asterisks, and are to be found at the end of the explication 
of each chapter. As they contain several remarkable particulars, they may 
probably excite the reader to their first perusal. Besides this, I have published 



HIS LETTERS TO THE LANDGRAVE OF HESSE-DARIMSTADT. 167 

a new method of finding out tlie longitude, which I discovered in my youth. 
Of this I send your Excellency ten copies, to communicate to those who have a 
knowledge of astronomy. If your excellency pleases, should a suitable oppor- 
tunity present itself, I shall esteem it a favor, if you will send two copies to the 
Royal Society at Berlin. I shall set out this week for London, w^iere I purpose 
staying about ten weeks ; and shall be informed by Baron Nolken, if the book is 
arrived. — I remain, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg." • 



To the [Swedish] Secretary of State. 

" I have at last finished the explication of St. John's Revelations ; circulated 
them round to all the universities in Holland, Germany, France, and England ; 
and am going to send seventy copies to Stockholm, of which your honor will 
please to take ten, and give five to the following senators : Senator Hopken, 
Senator SchefFer, and Nordencrantz,Councellor of Commerce, Bishop Menander, 
and Bishop Serenius ; the other five you will be pleased to dispose of amongst 
your friends. I desire the remaining sixty to be kept safe until I return home, 
meanmg to distribute them amongst the academies and libraries in Sweden, and 
to clergymen qualified for a more than ordinaiy station. I design to present 
four to the court, and the remainder to the universities and seminaries in foreign 
parts. Sir, it will give me great pleasure to hear of yours, and your dear father's 
welfare. — I remain, &c., 



Emanuel Swedenborg. 



" P.S. I shall depart this w^eek for London."* 



XXIX. 

SWEDENBORG'S LETTERS 

TO THE 

LANDGRAVE F ^HESS E - D ARM ST A DT 

AND TO 

HIS MINISTER, M. VENATOR.f 



LETTER I. 

To the Landgrave of Hesse- Darmstadt. 

" On the reception of your obliging letter, I was uncertain whether it was 
signed by you, most Serene Duke, or by some other person. I communicated 
the subject of my uncertainty to M. Venator, your minister, on his calling on me, 

* There are no dates to these two letters ; but as they were evidently written imme- 
diately after the publication of The Apocalypse Revealed, it is most probably that the 
date would be 1766, the year in which that work appeared. 

t See Dr. Tafel's " Samlung von Urkwiden, ^-c," or Collection of Documents con- 
cerning the Life of Swedenborg, p. 339, and following. 



168 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

who removed my doubt. I have deferred replying to your letter till I had re- 
ceived from the press the work entitled True Christian Religion ^c, of which I 
send your most Serene Highness two -copies, by the stage which leaves this 
city every day for Germany. As to the work called Arcana Ccdestia, it is not to 
be obtained any longer either in Holland or England, all the copies of it having 
been sold : but as I know that there are some in Sweden, I will write to the per- 
sons who have them, to know whether they will sell them at any price. I shall 
communicate their answer to your Highness as soon as I receive it. 

" In your gracious letter, you ask, how I attained to be in society with angels 
and spirits, and whether that privilege can be communicated from one person 
to another. Deign, then, to receive favorably this answer. 

" The Lord our Saviour had foretold that He would come again into the world, 
and that He would establish there a New Church. He has given this prediction 
in the Apocalypse xxi. and xxii., and also in several places in the Evangelists. 
But as he cannot come again into the world in person, it was necessary that He 
should do it by means of a man, who should not only receive the doctrine of 
this New Church in his understanding, but also publish it by printing; and as 
the Lord had prepared me for this office from my infancy, He has manifested 
Himself in person before me, His servant, and sent me to fill it. This took place 
in the year 1743. He afterwards opened the sight of my spirit, and thus in- 
troduced me into the spiritual world, and granted me to see the heavens and 
many of their wonders, and also the hells, and to speak with angels and spir- 
its, and this continually for twenty-seven years. I declare in all truth that 
such is the fact. This favor of the Lord, in regard to me, has only taken place 
for the sake of the New Church which I have mentioned above, the doctrine of 
which is contained in my writings. The gift of conversing with spirits and 
angels cannot be transmitted from one person to another, unless the Lord Him- 
self opens the spiritual sight of that person. It is sometimes permitted to a 
spirit to enter into a man, and to communicate to him some truth ; but it is 
not granted to the man to speak mouth to mouth with the spirit. It is even a 
very dangerous thing, because the spirit enters into the affection of man's self- 
love, which does not agree with the affection of heavenly love. 

" With respect to the man tormented by spirits, I have learnt from heaven that 
that has befallen him in consequence of the meditations to which he has devoted 
himself; but that, nevertheless, there is no danger to be apprehended from them, 
because the Lord protects him. The only method of cure for him is to convert 
himself, and to supplicate the Lord our Saviour Jesus Christ to succor him. — I 
remain, with respect, &c., 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
" Amsterdam, 1771." 



LETTER ir. 

To the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt. 

" I have received and read with pleasure the letter with which your Highness 
has honored me. I hope that the work just printed, under the title of The True 
Christian Religion, has now reached you. You may write, if you please, to the 
learned ecclesiastics in your duchy, to give their judgment .concerning it ; but I 



LETTER TO M. VENATOR. 169 

pray you to choose among them those who love the truth, and who love it only 
because it is the truth. If you take others, they will see in this work no light, 
but only darkness. That which is reported of the daughter of the Prince Mar- 
grave in Sweden, is a fiction invented by some foolish novelist, and I never even 
heard of it before. As to that which is related of the brother of the queen of 
Sweden, it is entirely true ; but it should not be regarded as a miracle ; it is but 
one of those jnemorabilia, of the same kind as those inserted in the book just 
mentioned, concerning Luther, Melancthon, Calvin, and others. All these memo- 
rabilia are but testimonies that I have been introduced by the Lord into the spir- 
itual world, as to my spirit, and that I converse with spirits and angels. It is true 
also that I have conversed with a person mentioned in the journal you cite, and, 
six months ago, with the deceased Stanislaus, king of Poland, in a certain society 
where he was, and where it was not known who he was. He made all the 
happiness of his life consist in remaining thus unknown in these assemblies, 
and in conversing there familiarly with the spirits and angels as one of them. I 
afterwards saw him transferred to a northern region, where I learnt that he had 
been called by a society of Roman Catholics, over whom he presided. In the 
same way, I have often conversed with the Roman Pontiff, who has lately died. 
After his decease he remained with me a whole day ; but it is not permitted me 
to publish anything respecting his manner of hving, or his state. You may see, 
if you will, what I have written in my last work, concerning the Pontiff who 
reigned some thirty or forty years ago. Treat favorably, I pray you, whatever 
has relation to the honor of God.— I am, with respect, &c., 

"Emanuel Swedenborg. 
*' Amsterdam, July 15, 1771." 



LETTER III. 

To M. Venator. 



*' I hope that my new work, entitled True Christian Religion, is now in your 
hands, and that the two copies, which I sent at the same time to the Landgrave, 
have reached him. I desire to have your judgment upon the subject there 
treated oi, because 1 know, that, being enlightened by the Lord, you will there 
see ia light, more than others, the truths which are there manifested in accord- 
ance with the Word. I send to day my reply to the letter which his High- 
ness, your Prince, has recently sent to me ; and by his orders, I speak to him of 
the conversations which I have had with two personages in the spiritual world. 
But these conversations, as well as that between the queen of Sweden and her 
brother when he was living, which was made known to me by him in the spir- 
itual world, ought by no means to be regarded as miracles ; they are only testi- 
monies that I have been introduced by the Lord into the spiritual world, and 
that I have been in association with angels and spirits, in order that the church, 
which until now had remained in ignorance concernmg that world, may know 
that heaven and hell exist in reality, and that man lives after death, a man, as 
before; and that thus there might be no more doubt as to his immortality. 
Deign, I pray you, to satisfy his Highness, that these are not miracles, but only 
Cestimoaies that I converse with angels and spirits. 
12 



170 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

" You may see in the work above-mentioned, that there are no more miracles, 
at this time ; and the reason why. It is, that they who do not beUeve because 
they see no miracles, might easily, by them, be led into fanaticism. I have 
seen two volumes, in quarto, of miracles wrought by the Abbe Deacon Paris,* 
which are nothing but falsehoods, being partly fantastic and partly magical ; 
and it is the same with the other miracles of the Roman Catholics. Examine, I 
pray you, what I have said on the subject of miracles in that work. At this day, 
faith will be established and confirmed in the New Church, only by the Word 
itself and by the truths it reveals ; truths which appear in light to the reader of 
my last work, which is itself an indication that the Lord is present and enlight- 
ens him. For every truth contained in the Word shines in heaven ; and comes 
down from thence into this world, to those who love truth because it is truth. — I 
have the honor to be, &c., 

"Emanuel Swedenborg. 
"Amsterdam, July 13, 1771." 



XXX. 

SWEDENBORG'S LETTER 

TO 

MR. WENNGRENjt 

ONE OF THE .MAGISTRATES OF GOTTENBURG. 



" Esteemed Friend, 

*« I have received your letter, together with the records concerning the boy 
who can cure diseases ; with respect to him, I cannot at this time explain my- 
self, because the subject of religion in regard to my intercourse with the spiritu- 
al world MOW makes a stir, as well here as in other parts of the country, and , 
this would in some degree interfere with the subject. Some few days since, 
that private concern of my own was determined in the clerical assembly at the ' 
Diet. Whether the dean will be as satisfied now as he has been hitherto is ' 
best known at Gottenburg ; the clergy and others will probably give some cet- ' 
tain account of this next week, by letter : among his party there have been 
some merciless slanderers, the expressions of whom have fallen on the ground 
like fiery balls from the clouds, and become extinguished. — I remain, &c,, 

" Emanuel Swedenborg. 
«« Stockholm, Jan. 18, 1770." 

* This man was born in the city of Paris, in 1690, of a good family. He became a 
priest, took deacon's orders, and attached himself to the Jansenist, or high orthodox 
party. He renounced his inheritance, and devoted himself to poverty and labor; and 
at his death in 1727, was buried in the church-yard of St. Medard. In his life he had 
acquired a sort of celebrity, and the Jansenists made use of it after his death, to give 
them an advantage over their enemies, the Jesuits. Astonishing miracles took place, 
or seemed to take place, at his tomb, which it was impossible to account for or explain. 
The whole aft'air produced so much excitement and disturbance, that, five years after 
his death, the church-yard where he was buried was walled up by order of government 

f See above p. 76. 



REMARKS ON THE VERSIONS OF THE BIBLE USED BY HIM. 171 

XXXI. 

REMARKS BY MR. A. NORDENSKJOLD, 



DIFFERENT EDITIONS OF THE BIBLE MADE USE OF 
BY SWEDENBORG. 



I 



We have seen above p. 125, that after Swedenborg's spiritual illumination had com- 
menced he applied himself exclusively to the study of the Word, both as to its letter, in 
the Hebrew text, and as to its " spirit and its lifc,'^ or as to that spiritual sense which 
he demonstrates as existing in every part of the Holy Scriptures. It may be interesting 
to the present as well as to the future generations, to know the different editions of the 
Bible which he made use of. This information is contained in the New Jerusalem Maga- 
zine for 1790, p. 87, where we read as follows : — 

" Swedenborg possessed four editions of the Holy Bible in Hebrew : — 

"I. That by T. Pagnini Montani, containing, fol. 1657, in wliich he made no 
remarks in the margin, as I was informed by the person wlio bought it at his 
sale. 

"II. Bihlia Hebraica 'punctata, cum Novo Testamento GrcBco, 8vo. of the edition of 
Manasse Ben Israel, 1639, Amsterdam. This was also without remarks. 

"III. Reineccii Bihl. Hebr. Lipsice^ 1739, 4to. This I have happily found; it is 
filled with remarks, and with the Latin translation of several Hebrew words, as 
also some observations on the internal sense. The book is much used. I shall 
add it to the collection of manuscripts. 

** IV. Bibl. Hebr. secundum Edit. Belgii Edvardi Vander Hooght, cum versione 
Latina Sebastiani Schmidii; Lipsice, 1740, 4to. This book was given to the Rev, Mr. 
Ferelius of Schofde, for interring him at London, where he then was minister to 
the Swedish chapel. There is no remark in the margin, but a great number of 
lines and asterisks, at the most remarkable places of the Latin version, the origi- 
nal text not being in any manner touched ; because, according to the expression 
of Swedenborg, ' The Word is perfect, such as we have it.' Of the New Testa- 
ment in Greek, he had none besides that mentioned, No. II., and which is a fresh 
edition of that by Elzevir in 1624, made by Janson, and the edition of Leusden, 
Amsterdam, 1741, with the Latin version. It is probable he has followed this 
edition in translating the Apocalypse. 

" Of the Latin translations of the Bible, he chiefly made use of that by Schmid- 
ius, Lipsiaj, 1740, after the time that he began the Arcana Cailestia, because he 
found this to be more literal and exact than all the others. Nevertheless, in all 
his quotations, and above all in the Arcana Calestia, he has more exactly ex- 
pressed the sense according to the original language. He has never followed 
the version of Arius Montanus, either of the Old or New Testament, as I have 
carefully examined and found to be the case. But he had four copies of the 
Latin translation of Castillis, apparently for the purity of the language, which 
he was very studiously applying himself to, before he learnt Hebrew in 1745. 
In his quotations of the New Testament, he only made use of the translation of 



172 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBOKG, 

Schmidiws, first edition, which he sometimes has left, the better to express the 
sense of the Greek. From this it appears, that he always had the originals a8 
hand. But with respect to the author's translations of Genes-is, ExodiJS, and the 
Apocalypse, they are directly translated from the originals."* 



XXXII. 

SWEDENBORG'S ADDRESS 

to 
THE ESTATES OF THE [SWEDISH] REALM, 

AT THE OPENING OF THE GENERAL DIET OF 1761, 



We have seer* above p. 35, fliat, '* as a member of the Equestrian Order of tlieHouser 
of Nobles, Swedenborg took bis seat ia several of the Diets of the Realm," and it ap- 
pears that after bis spiritual illumination had commenced, he, as mrseh as other duties 
would permit, took an active part in fulfilling tho6e senatorial obligations which were 
incumbent upon him, as a peer of the realm. (See above p. 35-, note.) It has been sa 
much the custom, in consequence of erroneous ideas in respect to genuine Christianity, 
to separate wh»* is natural from what is spiritual, that one might suppose, that Swe- 
denborg, who is regarded by very many as the restorer, under an especial guidance of 
Divine Providence, of the genuine doctrines of Christianity through an enlightened in- 
terpretation of the Divine Word, would remain a stranger to the civil and political mat- 
ters of his own country and of the world, from the period his spiritual sight was opened 
to hold converse with the spiritual world, and to discern the internal or spiritual sense 
of the Holy Word. Swedenborg, it is true, ceased, from that period, to devote himself 
to those scientific and philosophical studies, which bad placed him in the first rank of 
the learned of Europe, and he was occupied exclusively in the study of the Sacred 
Scriptures, and in acquiring that spiritual information concerning man after death, 
which is so important for him to know, and which, when properly seen and applied, 
tends so greatly to promote him in wisdom and happiness. Notwithstanding this new 
position in which Swedenborg was placed, he did not neglect a single duty as a citizen, 
and in this he acted in perfect conformity with the doctrines lie taught.f 

The foUo'vVing is an address which Swedenborg presented to the Estates of the Realm 
at the opening of the general Diet in 1761 4— 

ADDRESS. 

*' The Estates of the kingdom having assembled for the first time this year, and 
the honorable deputies being at this moment engaged in their deliberations, I 

♦ We wish to observe that Swedenborg required the absolute literal sense of Scripture 
as the basis of his spiritual interpretation, and as the Latin version of Schmidius was in 
this respect the most complete of any m existence, being an improvement ou the hteral 
version of Montanus, he preferred it, and in his very numerous quotations from the 
Word, especially in the Apocalypse Explained, seldom departs from the version of 
Schmidius, unless to render the Hebrew text still more faithfully and literally. 

t See the Doctrine of Life for the New Jerusalem, from beginning to end. 

i See La Nowvdh Jeru$aUm, Revue Religieuse et Scientifique, Avril, 1840, p. 53. 



HIS ADDRESS TO THE SWEDISH ESTATES OF THE REALM. 173 

have the honor to wish them the most happy success, and I sincerely trust that 
their resolutions may be decided as unanimously as possible. I beg, at the 
same time, that I may be permitted to suggest the following advice : 

" The essential business of the honorable deputies being that of examining all 
the facts which may be found contrary to the laws and statutes of the kingdom, 
to redress every wrong which concerns the public and the state, and to entrust 
all particular and private business to the different special deputations to which 
they belong, the great object of your honorable assembly is to prevent, with all 
wisdom and prudence, all discontent and disaffection which evil-disposed persons 
may have excited and fomented against the established form of our laws, and 
against the constitution of our government. For it is easy to discover faults and 
imperfections as well in the administration of a state, as in the conduct of an 
individual, and in the manner, in which he superintends his office, and manages 
his affairs ; but if we were to judge of a kingdom solely according to the imper- 
fections and faults we might discover either in its constitution or its administra- 
tion, it would be exactly like judging of a citizen from the imperfections and 
faults we might discover in his character, leaving out of sight his virtues and 
usefulness; which mode of judgment would be exceedingly unjust and preju- 
dicial to the individual in question, and inevitably bring upon him great and 
unmerited evil. 

"May r be permitted to explain and illustrate more amply what I have ad- 
vanced. 

*' I. Suppose, then, that it were proposed to discover and divulge all the de- 
fects and foibles of a man of good intentions, and very zealous for the good and 
prosperity of his country, by this means his honor would be certainly destroyed, 
and he would soon be regarded as a subject unworthy of any other consideration, 
than that of contempt. But in order to render the subject still more clear and 
obvious, I will take for example the Councelior of Commerce (M. Nordencrants), 
and myself. If all our weaknesses and errors were scrupulously examined into, 
and then placed under the eyes of the public in the blackest colors in which 
they could be presented, it is evident that we should be regarded as black as 
crows, although I dare presume to assert, that as to our good intentions, and our 
sincere love for our country, we would not yield to a single individual. 

" II. We know that man is naturally inclined to observe the faults of others, 
and to divulge them abroad, and to pass a judgment upon them which is most 
injurious to the person in question; this is agreeable to our hereditary evil dis- 
positions, so that each is inclined by nature ' to discover the mote which is in his 
brother's eye, and to neglect the beam which is in his own eye. Proud and evil-disposed 
minds delight in criticising and blaming others; whereas a generous and well- 
disposed man, who thinks as a Christian, explains everything favorably accord- 
ing to circumstances, that is, he knows how to excuse those faults, which are 
committed by error, and only to resent tiiose which are done of design and de- 
liberation. 

" III. I would observe, that the same observations apply to the public admin- 
istration of government. No government is exempt from fault; the faults, in- 
deed, of the best government are often numerous, and volumes might be written 
in detailing them. If, for example, I were to describe all the faults and errors 
which, I am informed, have been committed in England and in Holland, against 



174 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

justice and the real good of the country, I could fill a large volume with lament- 
ations. The governments, however, of these two states are considered the best 
which, at present, exist in Europe, except our Swedish government, under 
which every citizen enjoys the most perfect security both as to his life, his per- 
son, and his property ; no man is a slave here ; and all equally enjoy, as to civil 
matters, the most perfect liberty. 

*' IV. If there existed in the world a government in a celestial form, composed 
of men endowed with an intelligence really angelic, even this government would 
not be exempt from defects, but it would require constant watching ; and if any 
one were to exaggerate its defects, its foundation might be sapped by calumny, 
and the disaffection, which would gradually increase, might soon cause it to be 
changed or annihilated; and this desire might arise even amongst the best dis- 
posed persons. 

*' V. I would observe, that the wisest and best conducted government is that 
which we, at present, enjoy in our country. Everything here is wisely arranged ; 
everything here is prudently combined, as it were, in a regular chain, for the ad- 
ministration of justice. From the man who occupies the most eminent position, 
down to the person who performs the lowest function, everything is arranged in 
regular order, which everybody can readily observe, if he will but consider 
the subject. 

" We here see that every provincial magistrate is subordinate to a judge, and 
both to the Parliament, which is submitted to the royal revision, and this finally 
to the General Estates of the Realm. In like manner, the sub-bailifF and the 
bailiff himself are under obedience to the governor of the province ; this gover- 
nor is responsible to the Parliament and to the Councils of the State, and these 
again to the Senate, The Senate, conjointly with the Parliament and all the 
Councils, are responsible to the four Estates of the Realm, which at every Diet 
appoint and establish committees to examine their conduct. Besides, every 
man in oflice must render an account to the fitscal board ; and lastly, the General 
Estates themselves must render an account to God as their only Sovereign. 

'^This shows us. Gentlemen, that in our country everything is so wisely 
ordered and arranged, according to the laws of subordination, that no person can 
neglect the duties of his ofiice with impunity ; and also that in every law-suit 
every one is sure to succeed in gaining his cause, provided justice be on his 
side. Nevertheless, faults cannot altogether be prevented, and abuses will 
spring up, often under very specious pretexts, and by false and perverse inter- 
pretations of the laws and of justice, since human weakness always prevails 
among the generaUty of men, which inclines them in the interpretation and ad- 
ministration of the laws to regard personal friendship, family interests, prefer- 
ment, emoluments, &c. This, indeed, is a very great evil, and, alas! at the 
present day, common to all the governments of the world, without a probability 
of its being speedily and radically extirpated from any of them. But under our 
form of government, every one can peacefully enjoy the inestimable advantage 
of being in perfect security in everything concerning his life, his property, his 
honor, and his office, and the functions of his station. Every station enjoys its 
peculiar immunities and privileges, and particularly the cultivater of the land, 
whose fields, rendered fruitful by his labor, liberally recompense him for all the 
labor he expends in their cultivation. Thus no man is a slave amongst us 5 



MEMORIAL OF THE HONORABLE EMANUEL SWEDENBORG. 175 

but whoever lives as a good and loyal citizen, enjoys here every immunity and 
privilege due to his character, and he is perfectly free. 

" VL Lastly, Gentlemen, I have the honor to entreat you to consider that what 
I have said should be placed as a counterpoise in the opposite scale of the bal- 
ance, if it should happen that the other scale, in which all the defects of our 
government, and all the allegations which may have been raised agoinst its form 
and constitution are placed, should be found too preponderant. For justice is 
like a balance, of which indeed that instrument is the emblem ; in this balance 
good and evil are weighed, and if we act with impartiality in respect to our 
government, the result will prove that the good which proceeds from its con- 
stitution is, in every respect, paramount. 

" Nevertheless, since your honorable assembly commences this day its labors, 
I sincerely wish, that it will thoroughly examine, according to justice, all the 
abuses which may have arisen since the last Diet that it will redress and cor- 
rect those that have arisen through error, and that it .will rigorously extir- 
pate those which have been caused by departing from justice, and by pervert- 
ing the spirit of the laws. But I especially desire that the Diet will exercise a 
particular care in preventing and obviating those symptoms of discontent, which 
restless and turbulent minds would excite against the established form of our 
government, as well in the provinces as in the Estates of the Realm, now assem- 
bled. These useful precautions. Gentlemen, will prevent you from falling ir\ 
Charybdis, whilst endeavoring to avoid Scylla. 

"Presented to the Diet held at Stockholm, January, 1761, by 

*' Emanuel Swedenborg, 
" Member of the Senatorial Order of 
the Kingdom." 



In the third part of Dr. Tafel's Documents concerning the Life of Swedenborg, we 
find another memorial presented to the Diet of Sweden bearing date the same year (] 761) 
with the preceding. Whether there is some mistake in regard to the true date of the 
one or the other, or whether both were actually presented on different occasions during 
the same year, ^ve are unable to determine. But as the ensuing document is of equal 
intrinsic interest with the other, we have seen fit to insert it, together with the annexed 
Memorial respecting Finance, in which Swedenborg strongly insists upon the superior 
advantages of a metallic currency over that of paper. — B. 

MEMORIAL OF THE HONORABLE EMANUEL SWEDENBORG, 

Presented to the Diet of Sweden, in the year 1761. 

( Translated from the " Documents concerning the Life of Sivedenborg" Published 

by Dr. Tafel, Part 3, p. 64.) 



General Views respecting the Maintenance of the State and the 
Preservation of its Freedom. 

" There are two principal points, to which it behoves the very laudable the 
States of the empire to devote their particular attention, and to watch over as 
anxiously as each would guard his own life and welfare. The first is the pre- 
servation of our excellent constitution, and through it of our invaluable freedom ; 
he other is the maintenance of our alliances with foreign powers, and espe- 



176 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

cially with France. With regard to the first, it must be evident to every well 
constituted and enhghtened mind, that any change or revolution in our excellent 
government, must render us an unhappy people. We inhabit the extreme north, 
which one may call the end of the world ; and if an absolute monarchy were to 
be again established amongst us, it would be as impossible here as it is in Rus- 
sia, or among the Asiatic nations, for the people or the country to create any 
opposition or counteracting power which might check and control e\^en a single 
vice or evil propensity of the sovereign; for evil is rooted and lies dormant in 
the nature of the sovereign, in common with all mankind, and accordingly 
breaks forth, through want of an opposition, upon the first opportunity that 
offers : that is, when the government is absolute. 

" It is indeed unlawful to deliver over one's life and property to the arbitrary 
power of an individual ; for of these God alone is Lord and Master, and we are 
simply their administrators on earth. 

" It would be tedious to enumerate all the misfortunes and the grievous and 
dreadful consequences, which might liappen here in the north, under a despo- 
tic government; I will mention therefore only one — popish darkness,— and will 
endeavor to exhibit it in its true light. 

" We know from experience how the Babylonian whore (which signifies the 
popish religion) fascinated and bewitched the reigning princes of Saxony, Cas- 
sei, and Zweibriicken, also the king of England, shortly before the house of 
Hanover was called to the British throne, and how it is still dallying with the pre- 
tender ; how in Prussia likewise, it tampered with the present king, when crown- 
prince, through his own father; not to mention king Sigismund and Queen 
Christina in Sweden. We are well aware, too, how this whore is still going her 
rounds through the courts of reformed Christendom. If, therefore, Sweden were 
an absolute monarchy, and this whore, who understands so well how to dissem- 
ble, and to adorn herself like a goddess, were to intrude herself into the cabinet 
of a future monarch, is there any reason why she should not as easily delude 
and infatuate him, as she did the above mentioned kings and j)rinces of Chris- 
tendom ? What opposition would there be, what means of self protection, es- 
pecially if the army, which is now upon a standing footing, were at the dispo- 
sal of the monarch? what could bishops and priests, together with the peasant- 
ry ,do, against force, against the determination of the sovereign, and against the 
crafty cunning of the Jesuits? Would not all heavenly light be dissipated; 
would not a night of barbarian darkness overwhelm the land ; and if they would 
not be martyrs, must not the people bow down the neck to Satan, and become 
worshipers of images, and idolaters ? 

" The dread of this and every other slavery, which I need not here describe, 
must hang over us for the future, should there take place any alteration in our ex- 
celknt constitution, or any suspension of our invaluable liberty. The only gua- 
rantee and counter check against such calamities would be oath and conscience. 
Certainly if there were an oath, and the majority were sufficiently conscientious 
to respect it, civil and religious liberty, and all that is valuable, might, indeed, 
in every kingdom remain inviolate : but, on the other hand, we must bear in 
mind that the papal chair can dissolve all oaths, and absolve every conscience, 
by the virtue of the keys of St. Peter. It is easy for a monarch to assert, and 
with every appearance of truth, that he has no thought of or desire for absolute 



MEMORIAL OF THE HONORABLE EMANUEL SWEDENBORG. 177 

rule ; but what each fosters in his heart and keeps studiously apart from the 
outward man, is known only to God, to himself, and to his private friends, 
through whom, however, what is hidden occasionally manifests itself. I shud- 
der when I reflect what may happen, and probably will happen, if private inter- 
ests, subverting the general welfare into a gross darkness, should here attain 
the ascendancy. I must observe, also, that I see no difference between a king 
in Sweden, who possesses absolute power, and an idol ; for all turn themselves, 
heart and soul, in the same way to the one as to the other, obey his will, and 
worship what passes from his mouth. 

" With regard to the other subject of consideration, our relations with foreign 
powers, and especially with France, it is well known, that already, at the com- 
mencement of our good government, the high States of the empire, and parti- 
cularly the secret committee, and subsequently the senate, declared, that an 
alliance with France was the best calculated to forward the interests of the state 
and to ensure its preservation, in case neighboring powers should cause us any 
unquiet; and this principally for the reason, that that kingdom, being situated 
at a distance from Sweden, and our relative positions necessarily precluding, the 
occurrence of any differences between us respecting the partition of lands and 
provinces, can look upon the increasing wealth, industry, and prosperity of 
Sweden without jealousy. With England the case is different; for since that 
country and Hanover have been united under one sovereign (who, as elector of 
Hanover, has come into possession of lands — how is not now the question — 
which formerly belonged to the kingdom of Sweden), his interests are turned 
against us, and ours against him, — and it is not possible that this can be over- 
looked or forgotten by either party ; yet until this takes place, our respective 
interests must remain constantly irreconcilable. It follows, therefore, that as 
long as England and Hanover are united under one sovereign, agreeably to the 
natural interests which bind one with the other, we can form no such alliance 
with England as may be concluded with France. 

"From the alleged grounds, the above two important subjects of consideration, 
namely, our excellent government and our alliance with France, have, since the 
commencement of our present constitution, which has been in force now for 
forty years and upwards, engaged the particular attention of the States of the 
empire, who have protected and maintained both, through the secret committee 
and its circumspect consideration, and through other arrangements ; and at the 
same time have confided their admmistration to the senate and to the Diet. 

" Now, as there are three senators, namely — Barons Hopken, Palmstjerna, and 
Scheffer, who have given adequate proof of the interest they take, as well in the 
internal government of the state as in its foreign alliances, and-have accordingly, 
together with the other members of the senate, supported the two ground pil- 
lars upon which the welfare and the safety of the state depend ; and as they are 
no longer in the senate, I think I am justified in venturing to propose, that they 
be recalled, and that Baron Hopken be especially solicited to return. This is the 
more urgent, now that justice has proved to be upon their side ; and equity de- 
mands it, since all the other senators who voted for war are to be retained. 

" I have not the least doubt, that the six newly added members of the senate 
have the welfare of Sweden equally at heart, and, as they are gentlemen of under- 
standing, penetration, and integrity, that they will, with the same zeal and 



178 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

S 
unanimity, watch over both the internal and the foreign administration of the 
government: yet respecting the three senators alluded to, there can be no doubt 
or hesitation whatever, since we have had positive proof of their integrity and 

capacity. 

*'Em. Swedenborg." 



The following Memorial respecting Finance was also presented by 

SwEDENBORG TO THE DiET OF 1761. 

" If the States do not, during this diet, make some arrangement for the gradual 
recal of the notes now in circulation, and the substitution of pure coin in their 
stead, it is to be feared that the present prevailing dearness will constantly in- 
crease, until the country becomes exhausted, when a national bankruptcy in all 
paper money must be the consequence. This must be evident to every reflect- 
ing person, when he considers, that a note of six dollars is now worth only 
three dollars in plats (a former Swedish copper coin) in foreign trade, and two in 
domestic ; and if the high prices still continue, it will probably come down to 
one dollar. In such case, how can the nation be preserved from ruin ? These 
grievous and dreadful events can only be prevented by the restoration of a pure 
metallic currency. 

" Many plans might be devised and proposed, to compel the circulation of the 
notes at their original fixed value, and thus meet the high prices ; but they must 
all be of little or no avail, with one exception, and that is, the restoration of a 
proper metallic currency, as it was formerly in Sweden, and is now in every 
other country in the world. In money itself consists the value of notes, and 
consequently of all kinds of goods. If an empire could subsist with a repre- 
sentative currency, and yet no real currency, it would be an empire without its 
parallel in the world. 

**Em. Swedenborg." 

XXXIII. 

TESTIMONY 

OP 

THE CELEBRATED MATTHIAS CLAUDIUS, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG. 



Matthias Claudius, called also Asmus, or the Messenger of Wandsbeck, was one of the 
most favorite poets of the Germans. He was born in 1740, and died at Hamburgh in 
1815. His collective works, in prose and poetry, consist of eight volumes, and were 
published under the title, " Asmus omnia sua secum portans." Claudius held Sweden- 
borg in great respect, and wrote the following document, which contains nothing new, 
or important, in order to counteract the prejudices, which were beginning to exist against 
his name. This Document was also published in the Aurora, for November, 1800, p. 
219, and is as follows : — 



I TESTIMONY OF MATTHIAS CLAUDIUS. 179 

" I am induced," says Claudius, " to say a few words concerning Swedenborg, 
consequence of a speech delivered in honor of his memory by Baron de San- 
del, in an assemblage of the Academy of Sciences at Stockholm. 

" Many persons are only acquainted with Swedenborg in the latter part of his 
life, and from his latter publications. It is perhaps arising herefrom, in a great 
measure, that a number of people are so hasty in pronouncing judgment con- 
cerning him as a man and as an author, who would have considered hun with 
more attention, and not so slightly, had they been acquainted with his life and his 
writings previous to his abandoning his former pursuits; at least one might 
ha-ve expected that such a character as Mr. Polyhistor,* or his editor, would 
have suspended their opinion concerning him, had they known that Sweden- 
borg possessed all their learning in his cradle. 

" Swedenborg, or rather Swedberg (for the name of Swedenborg he obtained 
in 1719, when he was ennobled), was born at Stockholm, the 29th of January, 
1688. He was the second son of Jasper Swedberg, bishop of Skara, and had 
from his childhood a favorable opportunity of making himself acquainted with 
all that is commonly called learning and science. He was very fond in his 
youth of the Latin poets, and made several attempts himself, which were re- 
ceived with approbation. After having studied for several years at Upsal, and 
obtained the character of a man of genius and application, he left his native 
country, and travelled into Germany, Holland and France, to see if he could 
meet with anything new worth his knowledge. He could never digest the idea 
of ranging the learned world into separate classes, such as divines, philosophers, 
&c. : he maintained that all sciences were for one man, and one man for all sci- 
ences. His favorite studies, however, besides those of divinity and philosophy, 
were chemistry, physics, and the mathematical sciences ; he became acquainted, 
by reason of his extensive knowledge of the latter, with the famous counsellor, 
Polheim, and King Charles XIL advanced him to the rank of assessor, on condi- 
tion of accompanying this great mathematician in all his enterprizes, and being 
always near him. 

" How much Swedenborg knew of mechanics will appear from the following. 
He transported in the year 1718, from Stromstadt to Iderfjol, a distance of about 
ten miles, over hills and valleys, by means of rollers, five large vessels and a 
sloop, for the purpose of carrying on the siege of Frederick shall. 

"In the year 1710 he commenced author, and published successively his 
Dcedalus Hyperboreus; An Essay to establish a proper Standard for Coins and Measures ; 
A Treatise on Algebra ; another On the Motion and Position of the Earth and Planets ; 
one respecting Ebb and Tide ; and A Treatise on Mines. He wrote the latter trea- 
tise in a journey to the mines of the Hartz of Saxony and of Austria, after having 
made himself acquainted with those of his own country. Having done this, he 
published, in 1734, his famous Opera Philosophica et Mineralia. From all these 
works, it appears that he was a man of an original genius, who did not copy 
from others, but thought for himself, and who was perfectly conversant with 
the subjects he treated. All his works were highly esteemed, not only in his 
own country, but also abroad. 

" In 1724 he was offered a professorship of the higher branches of the mathe- 

* A certain person who appears to have passed hasty censures upon Swedenborg 
and his writinsfs. 



180 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

matics, which he declined. In the same year he was elected a member of the 
Academy of Sciences at Upsal. The same honor was conferred upon him by 
that of St. Petersburg in 1734. 

" Now after Swedenborg had made himself acquainted with all the erudition 
of his time, and after the greatest honors had been bestowed upon him by indi- 
viduals and whole societies, he began to see spirits. His panegyrist (Baron 
Sandel) says that he had considered the visible world, and the nature of its re- 
spective parts, as a means by which we might, perhaps, become acquainted 
with the invisible world ; that he at first formed an hypothesis respecting it, and 
at length reduced it to a whole system. If this be the case, one must naturally 
conclude, that this system, even if it be a true one, must appear very strange to 
those, who of the visible world know very little, and of the invisible nothing at 
all, yea, cannot but appear to them in a very ridiculous light. Nil sacri est, said 
Hercules in a very angry manner one day, when he found in a temple the statue 
of Adonis. In the character and life of Swedenborg, such an Adonis is not met 
with, for whose sake he might have embraced different notions to what are 
generally received, as is commonly the case. He was always a virtuous man, 
and one who was interiorly affected with the beauty and majesty of the visible 
world. 

*' Whether Swedenborg really saw spirits, or anything new, or whether he 
was out of his senses, is a question which none of his opposers have hitherto 
been able to decide. However, we cannot help thinking that there are spirits, and 
Swedenborg often affirmed in his lifetime with great earnestness, and even on 
his death-bed in London, where he died March 29, 1772, that he was able to see 
spirits, and had seen them. 

" Now as the New World really existed long before Columbus found it out, 
though we in Europe were ignorant of its existence, so perhaps there may be a 
means to see spirits, though as yet we are unacquainted in what manner the 
spectacles ought to be shaped to accomplish the design. And suppose we 
were to make a pair of spectacles on purpose, and to make experiments, it does 
not follow that we should succeed. In the opinion of many wise people, there 
lies a great deal of truth hidden perhaps close by us ; therefore the strivings of 
a good man to find out the truth, ought rather to meet with applause than be 
censured with acrimony." 

XXXIV, 

MEMORANDA RESPECTING SWEDENBORG. 

BY THE LATE MR. PECKITT. 



*' London, January the 24th, 1778. I Henry Peckitt, went to Bath Street, Cold 
Bath Fields, to one Mr. Shearsmith, a barber, at whose house the learned and 
honorable Emanuel Swedenborg lodged, and died the 29th of March, 1772, and 
was then, as I have since found, 84 years old. 

" He, by the order of one Mr. Charles Lendegren, a Swedish merchant, who 
lives in Mincing Lane, Fenchurch Street, was laid in state at an undertaker's, 
and deposited, in three coffins, in the vault of the Swedish Church in Prince's 
Square, Radcliffe Highway ; with all the ceremonies of that Church. 



MEMORANDA RESPECTING SWEDENBORG. 181 

•' It seems, by the account of Mr. Shearsmith, that the Baron had visited Eng- 
land three or four different times. He had lodged in Cold Bath Fields, and 
upon his return to England came to the same place, but the people had removed, 
and he was recommended to Mr. Shearsmith, where he lodged about two years; 
then he left England, and went to Amsterdam in Holland, at which place he 
had published many of his Latin works. He staid there some time, and then 
returned to England, and came to the same place to lodge with Mr. Shearsmith, 
and remained at his house till his death, which might be about two years. 

" The dress that he generally wore when he went out to visit, was a suit of 
black velvet, made after an old fashion, a pair of long ruffles, a curious hilted 
sword, and a gold headed cane. 

" He ate little or no animal food, only sometimes a few eels. His chief suste- 
nance was cakes, tea, and coffee, made generally exceedingly sweet. His drink 
was water. He took a great deal of snuff. 

" Mr. Shearsmith was affrighted when he first lodged with him, by reason of 
his talking in the night and day. He said, [he] w^ould sometimes be writing, 
and sometimes stand talking m the doorstead of his room, as if he was holding 
a conversation with some persons ; but as he spoke in a language Mr. S. did 
not understand, he could not make anything of it. 

" During the time he was at Mr. S.'s, he had some learned men that came to 
converse with him, especially a Rev. Mr. Hartley, of East Mailing, in Kent, and 
a pliysician called Messiter. 

" He did not know the English language so as to hold a running conversation 
in it. 

" He had an impediment in his speech. 

" He laid some weeks in a trance without any sustenance, and came to him- 
self again ; this w^as not long before his death. 

" He seldom or never complained of any bodily pain, but was attacked before 
his death Avith a kind of paralytic stroke. 

" He had no books, no, not so much as a Directory. He was far from being 
verbose. 

" It was said he had conversation, in spirit, with Luther and Calvin. 
" During his last visit to England, he chose to be mostly retired or private, 
" It seems he had no particular regard for times or seasons, or days or nights, 
only took rest when nature required — did not indulge. He went not to any 
place of worship during his abode with Mr. Shearsmith. 
" He did not want money. 

" Dr. Messiter had some Manuscripts he had by him at the time of his death. 
" The grand quantity were sent into Sweden, and are in one of the libraries. 
" The above is what I gathered from Mr. Shearsmith. 

«' December the 4th, 1783. Went again to Mr. S.'s to read over to him this 
above account, to know if it was just in every observation, and he told me it 
was. Mr. S. not being at home, I staid till he came in, and had some conver- 
sation with the maid that attended him, the Baron. She said, he was a good- 
natured man, and that he was a blessing to the house, for that they had harmony 
i and good business. 

I •' She said, that before he came to their house he was offered another lodging 

I in the neighborhood ; but he told the mistress, there wanted harmony in the 

house, which she acknowledged, and recommended him to Mr. Shearsmith's. 



182 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

" Upon asking the maid if he ever ate any animal food, said he once had some 
pigeon pie. 

*' She said, that he told them a few days before his death, when it would hap- 
pen; and, said she. He was as pleased ! — and she made a comparison, that the 
pleasure was such as if she was going to have a holiday, to go to some merry- 
making. 



" London, March, 16, 1 778. I, Henry Peckitt, called upon Mr. Springer, No. 12, 
Craven Buildings, near Wych Street, who is Counsellor of Commerce for Swe- 
den. He had been acquainted with the Baron Swedenborg for many years. It 
seems the Baron had visited England many times during his life. 

" Mr. Springer told me the Baron had a fine house and garden at Stockholm ; 
and he was sitting with company at Gottenburg, which is I 88 miles from Stock- 
holm, and told them that part of the town was on fire where his house and 
garden were, and he hoped his house would escape the flames, 1759. He shortly 
after told them his house was safe, but the garden was destroyed ; and when 
the post arrived, a few days after, it was as he had predicted. 

*' Mr. Springer also told me that the Queen of Sweden had writ letters to her 
brother, a Prince of Prussia, and having n& answer, she doubted whether he 
had received them or not. The Baron at that time had converse with the Queen, 
and her brother died in Prussia. She was desirous to know if he had received 
the letters. She consulted the Baron, who said he would inform her in a few 
days. He did, and told her he had received them, and was going to answer 
them, and that in an escritoire of the Prince's was a letter unfinished, intended 
for her, but he was taken ill and died. She sent to the King of Prussia, and it 
was as the Baron had foretold : the King sent her the unfinished letter. 

" It seems the Baron was always subject to an impediment in his speech. He 
writ none of his Theological works for gain. 

" So much from Mr. Springer." 



XXXV. 

REMARKS 

BY 

THE MARQUIS DE THOME,* 

ON AN ASSERTION OF THE COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED BY THE ZING 
OF FRANCE FOR THE 

EXAMINATION OF ANIMAL MAGNETISM. 



" Gentlemen, 

" In the report of the commissioners appointed by the King for the examina- 
tion of animal magnetism, these gentlemen have affirmed that there does not 

* The Editors (says The Intellectual Repository for 1815, p. 191,) feel happy in being 
enabled to lay before their readers the above article, which contains a most able vin- 



DE THOME'S REMARKS ON MAGNETISM. 183 

yet exist any theory of the magnet. This assertion has occasioned many 
remonstrances ; and I shall here make one, and, as I think, the most just of 
any, in favor of an illustrions man of learning, some years since deceased. 
Three folio volumes were printed at Dresden and Leipzic, in 1734, under the 
following title : Emanuelis Swedenborgii Opera Philosophica et Mineralia. . The first 
of these volumes is entirely devoted to a sublime theory of the formation of the 
world, founded on that of the magnetic element ; the existence, form, and mecha- 
nism of which are demonstrated by the author from experience, geometr^ and the 
most solid reasoning founded on these two bases. The subject of the other vol- 
umes, being foreign to tliat of this letter, I shall content myself with saying, that in 
tlie whole of the work, there is such an abundance of new truths, and of physical, 
mathematical, astronomical, meclianical, chemical, and mineralogical know- 
ledge, as would be more than sufficient to estabhsh the reputation of several 
difierent writers. Accordingly, he acquired so much fame by its publication, 
that the Academy of Stockholm hastened to invite him to become one of its 
members. This production of the Swedish philosopher has continued to main- 
tain the same degree of esteem in all Europe, and the most celebrated men have 
not disdained to draw materials from it to assist them in their labors ; some, too, 
have had the weakness to dress themselves in the feathers of the peacock with 
out acknowledsfing where they obtained them. On reading the paragraph in 
the first volume, page 387, entitled De Cliao Universali Soils et Planetarum, deque 
separatione ejus in Planetas et Satellites ; and that at page 438, De Progressions 
Telluris a sole ad Orbitam, it will be seen how much the Count de Buffon was 
mistaken in saying, in his discourse on the formation of the planets, that noth- 
ing had ever been written on this subject ; and it v/ill doubtless be regretted, 
that the French Pliny has not profited by the discoveries of the Stockholm Aca- 
demician, who, whilst he equals him in point of style, is infinitely superior to 
him in everything else. A cursory perusal of this first volume, will also be suf 
ficient to repress our astonishment at the experiments of M. Lavoisier, Sweden- 
borg having already shown, that earth and water are not to be regarded as ele- 
ments, nor elements as simple substances. I should forbear to add that M. 
Camus, who has performed such surprising things with the magnet before our 
eyes, admits that he has derived from this author almost all the knowledge that 
he has exhibited on this subject, and, in short, that without having studied him, 
our acquaintance with magnetism must be very imperfect ; — I say, I should for- 
bear to mention this, if the commissioners appointed by his Majesty to examine 
animal magnetism, had not affirmed, that there as yet exists no theory of the 
magnet. How can this assertion be reconciled with the authentic and positive 
fact I have now stated ? The farther one is from imagining that such a declara- 
tion on the part of the academicians and physicians can be the result of haste, 
of ignorance, or of partiality, the more difficult the thing becomes. Are we not 

dication of the character of the New Church Messenger. The reader will observe, 
that the Marquis de Thome, writing to a journal of a merely philosophical nature, the 
editors of which would have refused admission to an essay that appeared immediately 
to relate to theological subjects, has dwelt chiefly on the highly gifted Swedenborg's 
attainments as a man of science, by which he has prepared the way for a favorable re- 
ception of the testimony which he afterwards so elegantly and energetically gives in 
favor of his character as a divinely-commissioned teacher. A letter from the same 
writer, declaring his reception of the New Church writings, is printed in the JVew Jeru- 
salem Magazine, 1790, p. 86. 



184 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

to believe, that, to acquit themselves worthily of their commission, and to just- 
ify as they ought the coafideiice with which the sovereign has honored them, 
they would neglect nothing that could contribute to make them perfect masters 
of the question of animal magnetism, and enable them to decide upon it, and 
that they would accordingly read and consider everything which has hitherto 
been published on the subject: at least everything that has proceeded from the 
pen of the most celebrated naturalists. The work which has occasioned this 
remonstrance, being without contradiction the most complete and profound of 
all, ought principally to have fixed their attention ; and this being granted, the 
saying of the commissioners, that there does not yet exist any theory of the mag- 
net, — that is, that nothing which has yet appeared is to be regarded as such, — 
is saying that the theory of Swedenborg is none at all ;— that a theory demon- 
strated by experiment, geometry, and reasoning, and in agreement with them 
all, is not a theory. Such, I believe, is the exact amount of the assertion of the 
commissioners, which, therefore, it remains for them to prove. 

" 1 shall now proceed to enable the public to determine, whether the Swedish 
philosopher was not most intimately persuaded, that, in natural philosophy, 
every theory which is not supported by experience and geometry ought to be 
regarded as chimerical. In the first page of the first volume, he thus explains 
his views on this subject : * Qaijinem vult, &c. He who wishes to attain an end, 
must also wish to acquire the means. Now these are the means which more 
especially lead to knowledge truly philosophical; experience, geometry, and the 
faculty of reasoning.' In the following page he insists, in these terms : * Mag- 
na quidem, &c. Arduous is the attempt to explain philosophically the hitherto 
secret operations of elemental nature, far removed, and almost hidden from our 
view. I must endeavor to place, as it were, before the eyes, those phenomena 
which she herself is careful to conceal, and of which she seems most averse to 
the investigation. In such an ocean I should not venture to spread my sail, 
without having experience and geometry continually present to direct the hand 
and watch the helm. With these to assist and direct me, I may hope for a pros- 
perous passage over the tracl^ess deep. These shall be my two stars to guide 
me in my course, and hght me on my way ; for of these do we stand most in 
need in the thick dairkness which involves both elemental nature and the human 
mind.' At page 184 of the same volume, he says, again, ' Nisi principiorum, &c. 
Unless our principles be geometrically and mechanically connected with expe- 
rience, they are mere hallucinations and idle dreams.' Behold, further, hov/ he 
establishes that even elemental nature is under the government^ of geometry, 
and always like herself in the little as well as the great ; a principle which 
opens to the human mind an infinite career, and puts us in the route which it is 
necessary to take to arrive at all possible discoveries : ' Natura enim, &c. Ele- 
mentary nature (says he,) is a motive power variously modified ; a motive power 
variously modified, is a system of mechanism ; a system of mechanism is geo- 
metry in action, for it must needs be geometrical : geometry is the attribute of a 
certain substance possessing figure and space: as, then, geometry is the attri- 
bute of a substance, and thus is inseparable from every substance, whether sim- 
ple or compound, either in motion or rest, and from motion itself, it accompa- 
nies nature from its first origin and rudiments, from its least form to its greatest, 
through the whole world : and as geometry is the same in the greatest sub- 



DE THOME'S REMARKS ON MAGNETISM. 185 

stances as in the least, hence nature, being a motive and modified power, being 
mechanical and geometrical, is exactly like herself in each extreme, that is, to- 
wards each infinite of smallness or greatness, &c.' p. 121. The question then is, 
whether Swedenborg has proceeded according to these principles ? This ques- 
tion all naturalists and geometricians are invited to determine : and when they 
have agreed on their determination, which will certainly be in conformity with 
what I have advanced, they will unanimously admit, if I am not mistaken, that 
the theory of the Swedish author is a true theory of the magnet and of all mag- 
netism ; that it proves incontestibly the existence of the magnetic element ; that 
it proves further, that the particles of this element being spherical, the tendency 
of their motion, in consequence of this form, is either spiral or vOrtical, or cir- 
cular; that each of these motions requiring a centre, whenever these particles 
meet with a body, which, by the regularity of its pores, the configuration and 
the position of its parts, is adapted to their motion, they avail themselves of it, 
and form around it a magnetical vortex ; that, consequently, every body which 
has such pores, and such a configuration and position of its parts, may become 
the centre of such a vortex ; that if this body has an activity of its own, if its 
parts are flexible, and if its motion is similar to that of the particles, it will be 
so much the more disposed to admit them, &c. &c. ; whence it follows, that 
magnetical substances are sujh merely by virtue of the element whose existence 
Swedenborg has demonstrated, and thus that the magnetism of bodies depends, 
not on their substance, but on their form ; — a truth which is hinted at by the 
learned Alstedius in his excellent Encyclopsedia, printed at Lyons in 1649, in 
which, drawing a comparison between electricity and magnetism, he says, 
' Motiones electricce a materia magneticcB vero a forma pendent.^ 

" To ascertain the influence of the magnetic element on the question of animal 
magnetism, suppose we apply the result of the summary view that I have given 
of it to the three kingdoms of nature. It will be easy to convince ourselves, 
that of these, the mineral kingdom is the least favorable to this element, by rea- 
son of its inertness, of the irregularity of its pores, oi its angular forms, and of 
the rigidity of its parts : hence, were it not for iron and the loadstone, magnet- 
ism would be almost entirely banished from this kingdom. Proceeding to the 
vegetable, we may easily perceive, that its more regular pores, its rounder forms 
its more flexible parts, the sphere of activity, which results from its organisa- 
tion, and from the circulation which takes place within it, ofTer much greater 
facilities to the operations of the magnetical fluid. Arriving at the animal king- 
dom, which is the quintessence of them all, as being more rich in volatile spi- 
rits, and approaching thereby more nearly to elemental nature, and which is 
gifted more eminently, according to the perfection of its organs, with the same 
advantages which we have just observed in the vegetable kingdom ; — we find 
that this kingdom, by the exalted life of some of its subjects, is clearly the most 
active centre that the magnetic element can lay hold of; and as, besides, it pre- 
sents it, in the abundance of its fluids, in its circular vessels and veins, and in 
its spiral fibres, with nothing but analogous forms, of an extreme flexibility and 
capacity of motion, we cannot but conclude, that this is the kingdom which 
favors in the highest degree the admission of this element. To avoid exceeding 
the limits of your journal, I omit. Gentlemen, an infinity of things which I might 

here mention in support of these truths ; amongst which I should include the 
13 



186 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

respiration of animals, their hunger, their thirst, their loves, the functions of their 
absorbent and resorbent pores, — phenomena which, well analysed, would be so 
many proofs of the existence of animal magnetism, and would evince that, in 
reality, animals are nothing but living magnets, 

" Let me not, however, for what I have here said, be suspected of being a dis- 
ciple of the too celebrated Dr. Mesmer. Believing with him in animal magnet- 
ism, the existence of which has long since been as evident to me as that of the 
sun, if 1 intended to make use of it, it would be in a manner totally different 
from his ; as I fmd in M. Mesmer's mode many things that are not only vicious 
in point of morals, but also very dangerous in a physical respect. For want of 
knowing what Swedenborg has said respecting forms, series, degrees, corres- 
pondences, and, above all, respecting the element of man and human spheres, 
this physician has abandoned himself to a blind practice, the effects of which, 
sometimes good, as often bad, and most frequently none at all, fully evince 
either the incapacity of the practitioner, or the inefficacy of his remedy. But to 
learn in what M. Mesmer is deficient, it will not suffice to have read the work 
which I have just been describing, but it will also be necessary to be acquainted 
with most of those which follow it: for the indefatigable Swede continued to 
write upon the most difficult and abstract subjects, and, what is peculiar to him- 
self, he always possessed the art of enabling all his readers to understand them, 
by the method, precision, and clearness, with which he conducted the discus- 
sion. 

" Since an opportunity here offers to speak of his works, permit me, Gentle- 
men, to avail myself of it, to disabuse the pubhc respecting the bad impressions 
which have been attempted to be imposed on it concerning this great man. 
Prior to his Opera Philosophica et Mmeralia, he had already written on almost all 
the sciences. Amongst others was his work on algebra, entitled. The Art of the 
Rules ; a new method to find the longitude by land and sea, by the aid of the moon ; 
another for the trial of new ships, &c. &c. &c. ; not to mention some hterary pro- 
ductions which were the first essays of a youth which had been employed in learn- 
ing the principal living languages of Europe, and all the dead ones. He was so 
well versed in the latter, particularly in Latin, and the Oriental languages, that 
he was consulted by those who made the study of them their particular profes- 
sion. Posterior to the year 1734, we have of his. The Animal Kingdom ^ 
The Economy of this Kingdom ; An Essay on the Infinite, the Final Cause of Creation, 
and the Mechanism of the Operation of the Soul and Body ; with a poem on The Birth 
of our Globe and that of the First Man ; works which are above all praise. But 
what shall we say of his theosophical treatises, where the greatest secrets are 
revealed without emblem or allegory ; where the science of correspondences, 
which has been lost for near four thousand years, and of which the hierogly- 
phics of Egypt were but useless monuments and relics, is again restored ? I 
will say that a perusal can alone give any idea of them ; that the more the prin- 
ciples, equally new and fertile, which are accumulated in these works, are re- 
flected on, the more they are applied to nature, to ourselves, to everything that 
can become an object of our thoughts and affections, the more clearly the truth 
will shine, the more we shall be compelled to pay homage to the superiority of 
illustration [lumi^res] which has given them birth, and to acknowledge in them 
the evidences of a wisdom more than human. 



CURIOUS MEMORIAL OF SWEDENBORO. 187 

*' As m addition to such profound and universal knowledge Swedenborg joined 
the purest virtue and the sweetest manners, he might be expected to meet with 
detractors ; he acccrdingly has had them, and he has them still. I have often 
heard him publicly decried, but always from one of the three following motives, 
and with the intention of preventing his works from being read. Some attribut- 
ing everything to chance, and believing in nothing but nature, are afraid that 
the luminous works of the greatest naturalist, and the sublimest theosophist that 
has yet existed, would give the last blow to their tottering system. Others hav- 
ing borrov/ed from him without acknowledging it, are apprehensive that if his 
works should obtain more notice, their plagiaries would be detected. The third 
class, enjoying a reputation founded on a ialse opinion of their knowledge, but 
being unable to conceal their incapacity from themselves, dread the appear- 
ance of this polar star, because it would infallibly eclipse them, and soon reduce 
them to their just estimation. I know not from which of these motives it was that 
an anGnymous writer inserted, about two years ago, in the Courier de I' Europe, a 
pretended notice respecting Swedenborg and his writings, which was nothing 
but a tissue of wrong dates, false titles, and palpable calumnies and contradic- 
tions : it is thus that self-love, disfiguring, falsifying, and obscuring everything 
is the source of every evil, and the scourge of the human race. The first labor, 
then, to be undertaken to arrive at the truth is, to combat, to conquer, and to 
chain down, this principle for ever. Then the soul of man, recovering its 
liberty, and restored to the light for which it was born, may roam ut pleasure 
through the whole of nature, and pursuing its flight, may elevate itself even to 
that world which ignsrant mortals regard as imaginary, but which will always 
be, whatever they may say, the vivifying sphere, and the true home of the 
human mind. 

" This, Gentlemen, is what I thought it my duty to make public for the benefit 
of society, from a regard for truth, and in gratitude to him to whom I am in- 
debted for the major part of the little that I know; though, before I met with his 
writings, I had sought for knowledge amongst almost all the writers, ancient and 
modern, who enjoyed any reputation for possessing it. — I have the honor to 
be, &c. ^ 

■" Marquis de Thome. 
■''Paris, Aug. 4, 1785." 

XXXVl, 

CURIOUS MEMORIAL OF SWEDENBORG, 

CONCERNING 

€HARLES Xn. OF SWEDEN, 



Letter of M. Swedenborg, Assessor of the Board of Mines, to M. Nordberg, 

Author of the " History of Charles XII. 

^ Sir, — As you are now actually engaged upon the Life of Charles XII. , I 

avail myself of the opportunity to give you some information concerning that 

monarch, which is, perhaps, new to you, and worthy of being transmitted to 



188 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

posterity. I have already touched upon the subject, in the fourth part of my 
Miscellanea, treating £?e Calcido novo Sexagenario, ^c, whence M. Wolff has derived 
what he has said in his Elementa Matheseos JJnnersoi, relative to this new Calcu- 
lus.* 

"In 1716, when M. Polheim received the king's orders lo repair to Lund, he 
engaged me to accompany him thither. Having been presented to his majesty, 
he often did us the honor of conversing with us upon the different branches of 
mathematics, and particularly upon mechanics, the mode of calculating forces,- 
and other problems of geometry and arithmetic. He seemed to take remarkable 
X^leasure in these conversations, and often put questions, as if he merely pro- 
posed to gain some slight elucidation from us ; but we soon found that these 
things were not strange to him, which put us, subsequently, more upon our 
guard, not to speak to him of comnjon or unimportant matters, nor to advance 
anything doubtful in which he might have shown us to be mistaken. The con- 
versation turning upon analytical and algebraical calculation, as well as upon 
what is called the regula falsi (rale of false position), he desired us to bring 
forward examples, which we accordingly did, proposing such as made it in- 
cumbent, in order to proceed agreeably to rule, to use signs or symbols, as weU 
as equations. The king did not require them, and after a few minutes reflection, 
he told us, without any other aid than his own superior genius, in what way 
our examples might be solved, which we always found to agree perfectly with 
our calculations. I confess, that I have never been able to understand, how, by 
mere reasoning, and without the aid of Algebra, he was enabled to solve prob- 
lems of this kind. It seemed, indeed, that the king was not sorry to display be- 
fore M. Polheim — a competent judge in these things — a penetration and power 
of reasoning, equalling those of the ablest mathematicians. 

" I will now relate to you, as I am peculiarly able to do, what arose from this 
learned amusement, which is as follows : — Conversing one day with the king 
upon arithmetic, and the mode of counting, we observed, that almost all nations 
upon reaching 10, began again; that those figures which occupy the first place, 
never change their value, while those in the second place, were multiplied ten- 
fold, and so on with the others ; to which we added, that men had apparently 
begun by counting their fingers, and that this method was still practised by the 
people; that arithmetic having been formed into a science, figures had been in- 
vented, which were of the utmost service; and, nevertheless, that the ancient 
mode of counting had been always retained, in beginning again after arriving 
at 10, and which is observed by putting each figure in its proper place. The 
king was of opinion, that had such not been the origin of our mode of counting, 
a much better and more geometrical method might have been invented, and 
one which would have been of great utility in calculations, by making choice 
of some other periodical number than 10. That the number 10 had this great 
and necessary inconvenience, that when divided by 2, it could not be reduced 
to the number 1 without entering into fractions. Besides, as it comprehends 
neither the square, nor the cube, nor the fourth power of any number, many 



* Christ. WolfPs Elementa Matheseos Universe, Tom. 1, p. 21, Genevae, 1743. The 
passage is as follows: — " Et Carolus XII., Rex SueciaB, calculum Sexagenarium ex- 
cogitavil, referente Emanuele Swedenborgio, novis characteribus efi numeris, novisque 
denominationibus adinventis," 



CURIOUS MEMORIAL OF SWEDENBORG. 189 

difficulties arise in numerical calculations. Whereas, had the periodical number 
been 8 or 16, a great facility would have resulted, the first being a cube number, 
of which the root is 2, and the second a square number, of which the root is 4, 
and that these numbers being divided by 2, their primitive, the number I would 
be obtained, which would be highly useful with regard to money and measures, 
by avoiding a quantity of fractions. The king, after speaking at great length on 
this subject, expressed a desire that we should make a trial with some other 
number than 16. Having represented to him, that this could not be done, unless 
we invented new figures, to which, also, names altogether different from the 
ancient ones must be given, as, otherwise, great confusion would arise, he de- 
sired ns to prepare an example in point. 

" We chose the number 8, of which the cube root is 2, and which, being 
divided by 2, is reduced to the primitive number 1. We also invented new 
tigures, to which we gave new names, and proceeded according to the ordinary 
method ; after which we applied them to the cubic calculations, as well as to 
naoney and to measures. The essay having been presented to the king, he was 
pleased with it : but it was evident that lie had wished something more ex- 
tended, and less easy, in order that he might display the superiority of his genius 
and his great penetration. To this end he proposed to adopt some number 
which should contain a square as well as a cube, and which, when divided by 
% might be reduced to the primitive number 1. He made choice of 64 ; but we 
observed to him that it was too high a number, and, consequently, very incon- 
venient, and, indeed, that it was almost impossible to employ it ; that, besides, 
if we were obliged to reckon up to 64, before recommencing, and that upon 
reaching 64 times 64, or 4096, only three figures were used, calculation would be 
rendered immensely difficult, especially with regard to multiplication and divi- 
sion ; because it would be necessary to commit to memory a multiplication 
cable composed of 4096 numbers, while the common table comprised only 80 
or 90 numbers. However, the more we urged our difficulties, the more he was 
determined to put his idea into pra-ctice ; and to show the possibility of what 
appeared to us to require long and profound reflection, he undertook to devise 
this method himself, and to lay down the plan of it, which he sent to us the 
next morning. He had invented new figures, each with its particular name. 
The 64 figures were divided into 8 classes, each being designated by a particu- 
lar symbol. Upon a closer inspection, I found that these symbols or signs were 
composed of the initial and final letters of his own name, in a manner at once 
so clear and exact, that when the first 8 numbers were known, all the rest up 
to 64 were attainable without the least difficulty. The names of the 8 numbers 
of the first class were very simple, and those of the others so well contrived, 
that one could easily remember them, without fear of confusion. Having ar- 
rived at the number 64, when it became necessary to proceed with three figures, 
up to 64 timee 64, he had invented new names, admirably arranged, and so easily 
and naturally varied that there was not any number, however high, for which 
there was not a name ; and this might be carried on ad infinitum, following the 
principles and rules laid down. 

" It was to me that the king committed this plan, in his own hand-writing 
[the original of which I still preserve], in order to arrange from it a table show- 



190 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENRORG. 

ing the difference between this and the common mode of counting, both witFs; 
regard to the names and the figures. 

" The knig had also added to his plan an example in multiplication and in 
division ; two operations in which I hud contemplated so much difficulty. As- 
it was my place to undertake the perfecting of his method, T examined it tho- 
raughly, in order to discover whether it might not be rendered yet more easy and 
more convenient of application than it was. My attempts, however, were m 
vain ; and I much doubt whether the greatest mathematicians would have suc- 
ceeded. What I chiefly admire, is, the ingenuity shown by the king in the in- 
vention of the figures and the names,, and the ease with which the signs may 
be varied ad infinitum. I was also greatly struck with his example in multipli- 
cation ; and when I consider the short time in which he accomplished this, I 
cannot but regard him as a prince endowed with a genius and a penetration? 
much above those of other m-en ; whence I have been led to believe that, in all 
his other actions, he was guided by greater wisdom than apparently belonged 
to him. Certain it is, that he thought it beneath him to assume the air of a 
learned man, by affecting an imposing exterior. What he said to me, one day, 
regarding mathematics, expressed a sentiment truly worthy of a king, — 'that he 
who had made no progress w^hatever in this science, did not deserve to be con- 
sidered as a rational man.' Accordingly, he especially patronized those who 
have applied themselves to it ; so that had it pleased Providence to permit him 
to govern his kingdom in peace, he would have raised literature and science to- 
a higher state of perfection than they have hitherto attained in Sweden, or per- 
haps ever will attain. His example would have incited his subjects, who would 
have striven, with noble emulation, to deserve the praises of an accomphshed 
prince, always disposed to give merit its due reward. 

" At the time of which I speak, several projects, of great utility, had been laid 
before him ; and I v<^as directed to assist M. Polheim in putting them into ope- 
ration. Such was the basin at Carlscrona, for laying down the keels of ships , 
which, as there is no ebb and flow in that part of the sea, is one of the most 
considerable works in Europe. Such, also, was the undertaking of sluices be- 
tween Lake Wener and Goltenburg, in the midst of the rapid currents and cata- 
racts near Trollhatta ; an undertaking which would have been the admiration of 
the whole world, if it had not been neglected; to say nothing of other equally 
useful projects, which I need not enumerate. 

" I have the honor to be, &c., 

"Em. Swedenborg." 
[Translated from the 4th vol. of the " Histoire de Charles XII., 
Roi de Su^de, Traduite du Suedois de M. I. A. Nordbsrgy 
A la Haye 1748.] 



TESTIMONY OF PROFESSOR GORRES. 191 

XXXVII. 
TESTIMONY 

OF 

PROFESSOR GORRES OF GERMANY, 

RELATIVE 

TO SWEDENBORG'S SCIENTIFIC AND PHILOSOPHICAL CHARACTER. 

{From the Intellectual Repository for June, 1845.) 



The attention of the public, in every part of Europe and in America, is now power- 
fully attracted to Swedenborg and his important claims as a writer on theology and 
philosophy. Men of every religious denomination, and men of celebrity in science, are 
beginning to pay some attention to the most important writer that has ever appeared in 
the history of human knowledge. We greatly rejoice that the author, whose writings 
are intended to be so eminently useful to mankind, is thus emerging from the obscurity 
in which prejudice and bigotry have so long endeavored to conceal him. And we augur 
well for the gradual improvement and elevation of the human mind, in proportion as 
we see the works — especially the theological works — of Swedenborg brought before the 
public by the distinguished literary characters of the present time. Gorres, we believe, 
is a Professor of Roman Catholic Theology at one of the German Universities. He is 
a man of influence in his sphere, and is held in great esteem by a wide circle of ad- 
mirers. During the progress of the Latin and German edition of Swedenborg's works, 
Professor Gorres was induced to look into his writings, and to lay the results of his 
examination before the public. We have not met with the pamphlet in which the 
Professor has expressed his sentiments concerning Swedenborg and his writings ; but 
we possess copious extracts from it in the " German Magazine for the True Christian 
Religion," &c. edited by Dr. Tafel, of Tubingen. Of course. Professor Gorres does not 
admit the theology of Swedenborg — since that would be to deny the Romish Church 
and its dogmas; nor does he attempt to confute the doctrines of the New Jerusalem. 
But it will be seen that he has gone as far as a Roman Catholic divine could go, con- 
sistently with the position which he occupies, in awakening public attention to the 
v/ritings of Swedenborg. 

" Amongst the signs of the present time," says the Professor, " must, without 
doubt, be numbered the new edition of Swedenborg's works, and the movement 
which, in certain places, is caused by the doctrines he unfolds. Most persons who 
have only read that portion of his writings to which they have had access, might 
feel disposed to consider them as the results of a mind involved in an inextrica- 
ble maze, or bordering even on infatuation; some also may be disposed to con- 
sider them as the product of wilful deception. Others, milder in their judgment, 
explain, as Herder did, the enigmatical appearance on the ground of a powerfully 
creative imagination, which, actuated by strong impulses become at length 
habitual, generates in science as in poetry, wonderful images of a spiritualizing 
enchantment which sports in the weakened memory of age with the lively vis- 
ions of youth, and which the incautious senses assume for the actual and real 



192 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

perceptions of intellect ; and in this manner objective truth is unconsciously falsi- 
iied by the subjective, self-derived productions of the mind. The case of Swe- 
denborg, however, is not so easily settled as this two-fold mode of explanation 
supposes. Swedenborg was not a man to be carried away by an unbridled imagina- 
tion, still less did he ever manifest, during his whole life, the slightest symptom of mental 
aberration. His natural disposition was tranquil, equal, thoughtf id, meditative ; as 
is the case with most of his Swedish countrymen, the powers of his understand- 
ing were preponderating, and he had carefully nourished and cultivated them, 
devoted, during the greatest part of his life, to unremitted studies. It is there- 
fore not to be supposed, that he in this gross manner, with wakeful eyes, de- 
ceived himself, and that what in one moment he himself thought, in another re- 
garded as chimerical. On the other hand, he was in life and disposition so blameless, 
that no man dare ever intimate any suspicion of concerted deception ; and posterity 
have no right to call into question the unsuspected testimony of those who lived 
in the same age as Swedenborg, and who knew him well; if this mode of 
judgment be permitted, all historical evidence, even the holiest and most venera- 
ble, might be reduced to nothing. * * * If it be permitted to say of a man, to 
whose veracity, intelligence, science, irreproachable conduct, presence of mind, and fidel- 
ity to truth, his contemporaries bear testimony — if it be permitted for posterity to say 
that such a man had either imprudently deceived himself and the world, or had 
knowingly dealt in mere falshood and lies, there is an end to the verification ot 
historical events. * * * The appearance of Swedenborg as a seer of spirits, who, 
Uke the northern light of his own country, darting its luminous rays high up 
into the atmosphere cleared by the winter's cold, has mysteriously shone forth 
from the clearness of the most sober understanding, with a higher light — this ap- 
pearance must be more profoundly considered, and explained on principles more 
general than have hitherto been adopted," &c. 

In relation to Swedenborg's Principia, &c. the Professor says : — 

«• Swedenborg in this work lays down the results of his scientific researches 
during the course of his previous life — results which he afterwards, in his Essay 
concerning the Infinite, only extended, and which he carried over from the pro- 
vince of the natural into the province of the spiritual." 

We must here observe, that Professor Gorres commits the same mistake which has 
been sometimes committed by others, who have written too rashly concerning Sweden- 
borg, before they had properly understood his position as a writer on spiritual subjects, 
and before they had properly studied his writings. "What Swedenborg wrote on theolo- 
gical and spiritual subjects ivas not the outgrotvtJi, of his science and philosophy; he did 
not carry the latter over into the former. But what he wrote from 17^15 to 1771, was th© 
result of an especial spiritual illumination, and not the deductions of natural philoso- 
phy. The Professor continvies : — 

" Indefatigable in meditating over the wonderful phenomena in the created 
world ; constantly occupied in exploring those laws, in which the manifold 
variety of these phenomena is comprised, Swedenborg endeavored to penetrate 
the deepest depths of natural philosophy. He was guided in his researches by 
a mind clear, acutely analytic, endowed with skill, and well disciplined by mathematics ami 
logic. He endeavored to raise the mind to that height from which the first created 
germ, acted upon by the creative spirit and power, might be contemplated, and 



TESTIMONY OF PROFESSOR GORRES. 193 

from which the first buds [or principles] of things might be seen growing from 
the impulsive force which God has implanted in their nature." 

After this the Professor endeavors to give an analysis of the work, which, however, is 
not quite correct ; he then proceeds : — 

" It may hence be seen that this is a well constructed system of dynamics, lo- 
gically derived from the laws of magnetism; and that the manner in which he 
proceeds in the development of his principles is the algebraical. * * * The 
work, whatever may be still wanting to render it complete, will always be con- 
sidered as a beautiful and bold production of the human mind — a production 
indicative of profound thought in all its parts, a7id not unworthy of being placed on 
the side of Newton's mathematical Principia of Natural Philosophy. 

" Swedenborg had, indeed, not the brilliant genius of the Englishman, who, 
with a lucky cast [of the die], always hit upon the right and the true ; instead of 
which, however, he had a deeply penetrating sagacity, and a great and clear under- 
standing, endowed with an indefatigable pou'er of thought, which never ceased until 
he had sounded and explored his subject in all its depths. Swedenborg had 
not the skill in managing geometrical formulae, which the founder of the doctrine 
of gravition possessed in so high a degree ; but he kept himself entirely free 
from the ludicrous fear of deviating from old paths in philosophy, and he rather 
endeavored to direct the whole of his efforts to place metaphysics in the pro- 
vince of mathematics, and to make the former a visible object of contemplation 
(anschauung). In conducting experiments, Swedenborg wa<s diligent, precise, 
attentive, and trustworthy ,- although he may be wanting in that elegance which 
makes ISewton's work on optics a finished work of art [or of scientific skill]. 
And whilst a greater depth of speculation characterizes the work of the Swede, 
that of the Briton is marked by a more widely-extended surface, and is more 
richly furnished. Hence it is that the work of the former has been hitherto 
passed over in silence in the history of science, without making any great im- 
pression; whereas that of Newton, owing to the manifold practical results 
which have attended it, has formed an epoch in the history of human knowledge. 
The work of Swedenborg, however, contains, no doubt, a rich treasure of enlarged 
and prof ound observations on nature. Many of the ideas unfolded in that work, 
are, on the one hand, connected with the oldest philosophy, and have, on the 
other, since Swedenborg's time, been most wonderfully confirmed through the inves- 
tigations which Herschel has made into the structure of the heavens, and by the 
discovery of the polarization of light, and of the magnetic operations performed 
by the galvanic battery. His spiral motion, which extends to every province in 
nature, into organic structures and their operations, and even into history, is an 
oxtremely appropriate expression by which numerous phenomena can be easily 
comprehended ; and it might, in the hand of a person skilled in analysis, be 
made as fruitful in physics as the doctrine of gravitation has been for astronomy." 

"What the Professor here states respecting E. S. as a natural philosopher — placing him 
in the same class with Newton, as an extensive and accurate observer of nature, and 
as a profound thinker on all her phenomena — is certainly honorable to his scientific 
character, and should induce the world of science to investigate his works. That New- 
ton's great province was mathematics is well known ; and it should also be known that 
Swedenborg had the honor of introducing the differential calculus into his country — that 



194 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

he published a treatise oa algebra — that he discovered a new method of finding the lon- 
gitude ; and that, in consequence of his mathematical attainments, he was invited to 
take the chair as Professor of Mathematics at the Unirersity of Upsal. Had the Profes- 
sor also studied Swedenborg's works on the Animal Kingdom and its Economy, 
in which his philosophical principles are carried out in a most striking manner, we are 
certain that the author would have risen still higher in his estimation as a profound and 
original thinker. We w^ill adduce one more extract from the Professor's pamphlet : 

*' It now remains that we give an impartial judgment on his character and his 
mental disposition, and on his moral physiognomy, in so far as it shines forth 
from the series in which his labors as an author were produced ; and here we can- 
not but award to him the most favorable testimony. Throughout the entire 
career of his learned researches and activity, we everywhere discover the pious 
and religious man, who, in all his sayings and doings, w-as intent upon good. 
In his inmost soul, he was entirely opposed to all those systems of materialism 
and naturalism which so wantonly prevailed in his time ; and he built his own 
system on the foundation of an eternal Esse, and on its creating activities [from 
which, as from the only Origin and Cause all things are created and preserved]. 
And, throughout the entire course of his labors, he seizes every opportunity of 
pointing to this first great rational Cause of all things, and, at the same time, he 
endeavors to show the absurdity of all opposite opinions. Nor did the sensual- 
ism of those of his contemporaries which confines itself to the mere surface of 
things, nor did the more refined pantheistic abstraction of others, although pen- 
etrating more deeply below the surface, find any place in his system and works. 
On the contrary, his philosophy, as to all its principal and leading points, is 
founded on the eternal principles revealed in Holy Writ. Throughout his works 
everything appears simple and uniform, especially as to the tone in which he 
writes, in which there is no effort at display in the imaginative powers, nothing 
overwrought, nothing fantastic, nothing that can, in the remotest degree, be con- 
strued into a morbid bias of a prevailing mental activity, nothing indicating a 
fixed idea,* or manifesting any peculiarity of a commencing mental derange- 
ment. Everything he undertakes is developed in a calm and measured manner, 
like the resolution and demonstration of a mathematical problem, and every- 
where the operations of a mind composed and well ordered shine forth, with 
conviction as to the certainty of the results of its activity. In the cultivation of 
science, sincerity and simplicity of heart are necessary requirements to the at- 
tainment of durable success. We never observe that Swedenborg was subject 
to that pride by the influence of which so many great spirits have fallen ; he al- 
ways remained the same subdued and modest mind ; and never, either by suc- 
cess, or by any consideration, lost his mental equilibrium." 

We iTiight adduce several other extracts of similar import, but what has been stated 
is sufficient to show the writer's regard for Swedenborg as a man of the purest and no- 
blest intentions, of most unimpeachable conduct, and as a profound and original think- 
er in natural philosphy. No testimony can be more important, both as to impartiality, 
and as to the position the Professor occupies as a judge of mental productions. The 
sentences in the above extracts marked with italics, are so marked in the German from 
which we have translated. 

* This '^ fixed idea" denotes an all-absorbing idea which so possesses the mind as to 
Cdixise monomania. — Ed. 



LETTER OF THE REV. ARVID FERELIUS. 19>i> 

XXXVIII. 

LETTER 

OF THE SWEDISH CLERGYMAN, REV. ARVID FERELIUS,* 
TO PROF. TRATGARD. IN GRIEFSWALDE, 



In respect to the ensuing letter it should be stated that Ferelius, shortly after his re- 
turn to Sweden, in 1772, was requested by the clerical order to give an account of Swe- 
denborg, and to state what particulars he knew concerning their illustrious countryman^ 
then recently deceased. Ferelius, accordingly, sent in a document of three sheets con- 
cerning E. Swedenborg. In his reply to Prof. Tratgard's request, eight years after- 
wards, he states this fact, and regrets that he had not preserved a copy of it, as many 
particulars contained therein, had probably elapsed from his memory. The translator 
of Ferelius's letter having perused the document in German (the original having been 
Avritten in Swedish), considered that a few supplementary remarks were required, in 
order to render the letter, in certain points, uniform with Swedenborg's own; testimony 
concerning the subjects of inquiry, and to remove any obscurity which might exist. In 
so doing, the translator certainly took upon himself a high degree of responsibility, 
which, however, would have been warrantable, had he enclosed the supplementary 
remarks in brackets ; but this he omitted to do. In order, however, to satisfy our read- 
ers upon this question, we subjoin a strictly literal translation of the said letter. 

*' Honorable and widely Celebrated Professor, 

" According to your request, I will communicate what I can remember re- 
specting the last days of our celebrated countryman, the late Assessor, E. Swe- 
denborg, who died in London in the month of March, 1772. I performed the 
funeral service at his interment, in the Swedish church in that city, on the 5tb 
of April, which was the last clerical duty T had to perform in that country. At 
the conclusion of the former year, he had a paralytic stroke, which lamed one 
side and affected his speech : this was particularly the case if the air was thick 
and heavy. I visited him several times, and asked him each time whether he 
thought he should then die. He answered in the affirmative. Upon which I 
observed to him, that as many persons thought that he had endeavored only to 
make himself a name, or to acquire celebrity in the world by the publication of 
his new theological system (which indeed he had already attained), he should 
now be ready, in order to show justice to the world, to recant either the whole 
or a part of what he had written, since he had now nothing more to expect from 
the w^orld, which he was so soon about to leave for ever. Upon hearing these 
words from me, Swedenborg raised himself half upright in his bed, and placing 
his sound hand upon his breast, said, with great zeal and emphasis, ' As true 

* This was the clergyman who is said to have administered the sacrament to 
Swedenborg just before his death. In several passages in the early part of this volume 
his name is erroneously spelt Fernelius. The error, however, is copied from the Eng- 
lish edition of the Documents. — B. 



196 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

as you see me before you, so true is everything which I have written — and I 
could have said more, had I been permitted. When you come into eternity you 
will see all things as I have stated and described them ; and we shall have much 
to disco orse about them with each other.' I then asked him whether he would 
take the Lord's holy supper? He replied, with thankfulness, that I meant well; 
but that being a member of the other world, he did not need it : he would how- 
ever gladly take it in order to show the connection and union between the church 
in heaven and the church on earth. He then asked me if I had read his views 
on the sacrament. Before administering the sacrament I inquired of him, whe- 
ther he confessed himself to be a sinner ? Certainly, said he, so long as I carry 
about with me this sinful body. With deep and affecting devotion, with folded 
hands, and with his head uncovered, he confessed his own unworthiness, and 
received the holy supper. After which he presented me in gratitude, with a 
copy of his great work, the Arcana Ccclestia, of which only nine copies remained 
unsold, which were to be sent into Holland. 

" On another occasion when I visited him, I heard him, as I was ascending the 
stairs, speaking with great energy, as though he were addressing a considerable 
company ; but as I came into the ante-chamber where his female attendant was 
sitting, I asked her who was with the Assessor ; she replied that nobody was 
with him, and that he had been speaking in that manner for three days and 
nights. As I entered his chamber, he greeted me very tranquilly, and asked me 
to take a seat; he then told me that he had been tempted and plagued during 
ten days by evil spirits which the Lord had sent to him, and that he had never 
before been tempted by spirits so evil as these ; but that he was now again fa- 
vored with the company of good spirits. 

" When he was in health I once paid him a visit in company with a Danish 
clergyman ; we found him sitting in the middle of the room, at a round table, 
writing. The Hebrew Bible, which appeared to constitute his whole library, 
was lying before him. After he had greeted us, he pointed to the opposite side 
of the table, and said, ' Just now the apostle Peter was here and stood there ; 
and it is not long since all the apostles were with me ; indeed, they often visit 
me,' In this manner he spoke without reserve ; but he never sought to make 
proselytes. He told us, that he contemplated writing a book in which he v\;'ould 
prove, from the writings of the apostles that the Lord is the true and only God, 
and that there is none besides him. To the question, how it was that nobody 
besides himself enjoyed such revelations and intercourse with spirits, he replied, 
that every man could, at the present time, have this intercourse, as well as in 
the times of the Old Testament; but that the true hindrance why it is not 
so now, is the sensual state into which mankind have fallen. With other news, 
which on one occasion I received from Sweden through the post, was the an- 
nouncement of the death of Swedenborg's sister, the widow Lundstedt. I com- 
municated this information to a Swedish gentleman, whose name was Meier, 
who was travelling in England at that time, and who happened to be at my house 
when the news came. This person went immediately to Swedenborg, and con- 
veyed the intelligence of the death of his sister. When he returned he said, that 
he thought Swedenborg's declaration respecting his intercourse with the dead 
could not be true, since he knew nothing of the death of his sister. The next 
time I saw the old man I mentioned this to him, when he said, ' that of such 



LETTER OF THE REV. ARVID FERELIUS. 197 

cases he had no knowledge, since he did not desire to know them.' The 
celebrated Springer, who still lives in London, told Swedenborg on one occa- 
sion that a distinguished Swedish gentleman, who, I believe, was a brother of 
the present Count Hopken, one of the counsellors of state, was dead. Some 
days afterwards, when they met again, the Assessor said to him — 'It is true, 
Hopken is dead ! I have spoken Vv^ith him, and he told me thai you and he 
Vi-ere companions together at Upsala, and that you afterwards entertained views 
partly similar and partly dissimilar concerning political subjects.' He also told 
him several anecdotes, which Springer acknowledged to be true, and declared, at 
the same time, that it was his firm conviction that Swedenborg could not have 
acquired the information from any other source than from above ; on this ac- 
count he became a Swedenborgian. 

" When Assessor Swedenborg, on one occasion, was about to depart from Lon- 
don to Sweden, and had already agreed with a captain for the voyage, he came 
down to the water side to take a bed at the inn of a Swedish landlord of the 
name of Bergstrom, who is still living, and who undertook to supply provisions 
for Swedenborg during the passage. Amongst other things, Bergstrom asked how 
much ground coffee he should pack up for him, as he took a certain portion of it 
daily ; when Swedenborg replied, for six days, Mr. B. observed that that quantity 
would be too little, since (he thought) it was impossible to make the voyage in 
six days to Stockholm. Swedenborg then said, ' Provide for seven days.' What 
happened .' In six days the ship arrived off Dalaron, and on the seventh in 
Stockholm. The Captain, who was an Englishman, after his return to London, 
said, that he had never in all his life had so prosperous a voyage, for the wind 
was favorable to every turn of the vessel. 

" Although Swedenborg went sometimes to the Sv/edish church, and after- 
wards dined with me, or with some other Swede, he toid us that he had no 
peace in the church on account of spirits, who contradicted what the preacher 
said, especially when he spoke of three persons in the Godhead, which amount- 
ed, in reality, to three Gods. After my return from England, in 1772, 1 was re- 
quested by the clerical order, through their president, to give an account of Swe- 
denborg, in a manner similar to your present request, which I did in three sheets ; 
but I have since regretted that I did not keep a copy of what I then communi- 
cated. 

" P; S. Many may supposethat Assessor Swedenborg was a very singular and 
eccentric person ; this was by no means the case. On the contrary, he was very 
agreeable and complaisant in company ; he entered into conversation on every 
subject ; an^ accommodated himself to the ideas of the company ; and he never 
spoke on his own writings and doctrines but when he was asked some questions 
concerning them, when he always spoke as freely as he had written. If, how- 
ever, he observed that any person desired to ask impertinent questions, or to 
ridicule him, he immediately gave such an answer, that the impertinent ques- 
tioner must be silent, without becoming any the wiser. 

" Arvid Ferelius. 
« Skofde, March 31, 1780." 



198 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, 

XXXIX. 
TESTIMONY OF COLERIDGE, 

TO THE 

LITERARY, SCIENTIFIC, AND THEOLOGICAL 

CHARACTER OF SWEDENBORG, 

{Extracted from Vol. IV. p. 424 of Ms "Literary Remains.'') 



" So much, even from a very partial acquaintance with the works of Sweden- 
borg, I can venture to assert, that, as a moralist, Swedenborg is above all praise, 
and that, as a naturalist, psychologist, and theologian, he has strong and varied 
claims to the gratitude and admiration of the professional and philosophical 
student." 

To the above may be added, from the Intellectual Repository of April, 1842, some 
.farther notices by Coleridge of Swedenborg's writings, together with his opinion of the 
calumny, so often repeated, of his madness. 

'•' It is well known, that Coleridge read the philosophical works of Sweden- 
borg with much pleasure and admiration. His notes on many passages in the 
(Economia Regni Animalis, and in the De Cultu et Amore Dei, evidently indicate 
and prove this to have been the fact. We will here adduce a few of his notes 
which he appears to have penned as he xvas reading through the (Economia Regni 
Animalis. On the nn. 208 to 214 inclusive, he observes, ' 1 remember nothing in 
Lord Bacon superior, few passages equal, either in depth of thought or in rich- 
ness, dignity, and felicity of diction, or in the weightiness of the truths con- 
tained in these articles' (S. T. Coleridge, May 27, 1827). 

"On 251, he observes, that it is 'Excellent; so indeed are all the preceding in 
the matter meant to be conveyed ; but this paragraph is not only conceived with 
the mind of a master, but it is expressed adequately, and with scientific precision.' 

"There are several other notes to the same effect; but the one to which we al- 
lude, as containing an expression of amazement at the calumny that Sweden- 
borg should by some be called mad, is the following on the De Cultu et Amore 
Dei, on pages 4 to 6, in which Swedenborg briefly states his doctrine of Forms. 
' This,' says Coleridge, ' would, of itself, serve to mark Swedenborg as a man of 
philosophic genius, radicative and evolvent. Much of what is most valuable 
in the physio sop hie works of Schelling, Schubart, and Eschermeyer, is to be 
found anticipated in this supposed DementatOj or madman; thrice happy 
should we be, if the learned and the teachers of the present age, were gifted 
with a similar madness, — a madness, indeed, celestial and flowing from a di- 
vine mind!!' (S. T. Coleridge, Sept. 22, 1821, Highgate.) Such was the opi- 
nion of Coleridge of the charge so often calumniously alleged against Sweden- 
borg, that he was mad !" 



HIS LETTER TO THE ROYAL ACADEIVIY OF SCIENCES. 199 

XL. 

LETTER FROM SWEDENBORG 

TO THE 

ROYAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 

AT STOCKHOLM, 

ON THE HIEROGLYPHICS OF EGYPT. 

{From the Intellectual Repository for December, 1842.) 



The following is an extract from a letter addressed by Swedenborg to the Rev. Mr. 
Hartley, and called '^ an Appendix to the Treatise on the White Horse," which has 
been published by the London Printing Society, as an appendix to that small treatise. 

" It is commonly known, that in 'Egypt, there were hieroglyphics, and that 
they were inscribed on the columns and walls of the temples and other build- 
ings ; it is acknowledged, however, that at this day, no one is able to determine 
their signification. Those hieroglyphics were no other than the correspond- 
ences between the spiritual and the natural, to which science, the Egyptians 
more than any people of Asia, applied themselves, and according to which, the 
very early nations of Greece formed their fables ; for this, and this only, was the 
most ancient style of composition ; to which I can add the new information, 
that every object seen by spirits and angels in the spiritual world, is a mere cor- 
respondence; and the Holy Scripture, is on this account, written by correspond- 
ences, that so it might be the medium of conjunction between the men of the 
church and the angels of heaven. But as the Egyptians, and along with them 
the people of the khigdoms of Asia, began to convert these correspondences 
into idolatry, to which the children of Israel were prone, these latter were for- 
bidden to make any use of them. This is evident, from the first commandment 
of the decalogue, which says, ' Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven 
image, or any likeness {of any thing) that is in the heavens above, or that is in 
the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth. Thou shall not bow 
down thyself to them, nor serve them, for I, Jehovah thy God, am a jealous 
God' (Deut. chap. v. verses 8, 9). Besides this, there are in other parts, many 
passages to the same purport. From that time, the science of correspondences 
became extinct, and successively to such an extent, that at this day, it is scarcely 
known that the science ever existed, and that it is an object of importance. 
But the Lord being now about to establish a New Church, which will have its 
foundation in the Word, and which church is meant by the New Jerusalem in the 
Apocalypse, it has pleased Him.to reveal this science, and thus to disclose whatthe 
Word is in its bosom or spiritual sense. This I have done in the works entitled 
Arcana Cadestia, published in London, and Apocalypse Revealed, published at Am- 
sterdam. As the science of correspondences was esteemed by the ancients, 



200 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

the science of sciences, and constituted their wisdom, it would surely be of im- 
portance for some one of your society to devote his attention to it, and for this 
purpose, he may begin, if it be agreeable, with the correspondences disclosed in 
the Apocalypse Revealed. Should it he desired, I am willing to unfold the mean- 
ing of the Egyptian Hieroglyphics, which are nothing else but correspondences ; 
these being discovered and proved from the Word, in the Apocalypse Revealed, and 
to publish their explications, is a work which no other person could accomplish." 

Swedenborg also refers to the hieroglyphics of Egypt in A. C. n. 6692, 7097, and in 
other parts of his v/ritings. 



XLI. 

DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE, 

MADE OR ANTICIPATED BY SWEDENBORG. 

(From the London "Monthly Review for 1844.) 



We have determined to insert the following article from the London " Monthly Re- 
view" for 1844, notwithstanding we feel the force of the general view of Mr. Wilkinson's re- 
marks on this subject in his introduction to the " Animal Kingdom." " It is said that Swe- 
denborg has made various discoveries in anatomy, and the canal named the "foramen 
of Monro" is instanced among these. Supposing that it were so, it would be dishon- 
oring Swedenborg to lay any stress upon a circumstance so trivial. Whoever discov- 
ered this foramen was most probably led to it by the lucky slip of a probe. But other 
claims are made for our author by his injudicious friends. It is said that he anticipated 
some of the most valuable novelties of more recent date, such as the phrenological doc- 
trine of the great Gall, and the newly practised artof animal magnetism. This is not 
quite fair : let every benefactor to mankind have his own honorable wreath, nor let 
one leaf be stolen from it for the already laureled brow of Swedenborg. True it is that 
all these things, and many more, lie in ovo in the universal principles made known 
through him, but they were not developed by him in that order which constitutes all 
their novelty, and in fact their distinct existence. For in the first place it is impossible 
for the human mind to anticipate facts; these must always be learnt by the senses : and 
secondly, Swedenborg was too much a man of business to turn aside from the direct 
means to his end, or to attempt to develope anything beyond those means. His philoso- 
phy is the high road from the natural world to the spiritual, and of course has innumer- 
able lateral branches leading to \he several fair regions of human knowledge : but 
through none of these by-ways had Swedenborg time to travel : nay, could he have 
done so, there is nothing to show that he would there have discovered what his suc- 
cessors have done. He had his mission, and they had theirs. His views are at harmo- 
ny with all that is new and true, simply because they are universal, but in no fair sense 
do they anticipate, much less supersede, the scientific peculium of the present century. 
Swedenborg, therefore, is not to be regarded as an Aristotle governing the human mind, 
and indisposing it to the instruction designed to be gained from nature ; but ^s a pro- 
pounder of principles the result of analysis, and of a method that is to excite us to a 
perpetual study in the field of eiQects, as a condition of the progress of science." 

It is undoubtedly true that Swedenborg's great merit is to be recognized in the an- 
nunciation of 2^rinciples which underlie all science and philosophy and that we can 



HIS DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE- 201 

well afford to waive for him the claim to specific discoveries, yet if it be the /acf that he 
has announced even, in the most casual way, results in science which have been 
subsequently reached and fully confirmed, it cannot be amiss to make it known to the 
world. Of this character are doubtless the following. That they were the mere by- 
play or incidental offshoots of his reasonings — side views, as it were, to the grand leads 
of his inquiries — does not diminish their claims to an admiring notice. 

" Of the discoveries which Swedenborg made in chemistry, astronomy, and 
anatomy, it is impossible to speak in language too panegyrical. According to 
the Marquis de Thome, who addressed some remarks to the commissioners ap- 
pointed to inquire into the merits of animal magnetism by the king of France, 
Swedenborg was the first who offered a theory on the magnet. 

"It would appear, from the Marquis' showing, that the first volume alone of 
Swedenborg's great work {Opera Philosophica et Min^ralia) is one of the most 
complete and profound ever published. Swedenborg did not deal in generali- 
ties. He argued on geometrical principles, remarking (as de Thome informs 
us) at p. 184 of his first vol. — ' Unless our principles be geometrically and mechani- 
cally connected with experience, they are mere hallucinations and idle dreams.* 
De Thom6, a little after, says, that the theory of Swedenborg incontestably proves 
the existence of the magnetic element; that it establishes, that the particles of 
this element being spherical, the tendency of their motion, in consequence of this 
form, is either spiral, or vertical, or circular : that as each of these motions* re- 
quire a centre, whenever the particles meet with a body, which by the regulari- 
ty of the pores, and the configuration and position of its parts, is adapted to 
their motion, they avail themselves of it and form around it a magnetical vor- 
tex ; that, consequently, every body that has such pores and such a configura- 
tion and position of its parts may become the centre of such a vortex ; that'if 
this body possesses an activity of its own, if its parts are flexible, and if its 
motion is similar to that of the particles, it will be so much the more disposed 
to admit them, &c., &c. Whence, says Thome, it follows, that magnetical sub- 
stances are such merely by virtue of the element whose existence Swedenborg 
has demonstrated, and thus that the magnetism of bodies depends, not on their 
substance, but on their form ; a truth which is hinted at by the learned Alstedius 
in his excellent Encyclopaedia, printed at Lyons, in 1649 ; to which, drawing a 
comparison between electricity and magnetism, he says, Mvtiones electrica a 
materia, magneticce vero a forma pendent.'* 

" We must now take leave of the marquis, to whom we have been much 
indebted for this resume of Swedenborg's theory of magnetism, and refer to some 
other discoveries, which were undoubtedly Swedenborg's. And, first, of the 
Foramen of Monro. The first person who publicly claimed the discovery of this 
passage or communication between the right and left, or two lateral ventricles 
of the cerebrum, was Dr. Monro, the second of Edinburgh. For a long time 
many anatomists denied its existence, and a story is told, we think of one of the 

* Mr. Faraday, in the first Friday evening Lecture of this season at the Royal Insti- 
tution, touched very closely upon the opinion of Alstedius. See the Lecture referred 
to. The magnetic theory of Swedenborg receives additional assistance, if not confirm- 
ation, in father Boscovich's Theory of Matter — if that learned Jesuit had not seen 
Swedenborg's Opera Philosophica et Mineralia, which was published in 1734. It is 
likely he had, for his Theoria Philosophice Naturalis reducta ad unicam legem virium in. 
NaturcL existentium, was not published till twenty-four years after, namely, in 1758. 
14 



202 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

Bells, who, when demonstrating the cerebrum to his pupils, used to push the blow 
pipe through the parietes of the ventricles, and exclaim, ' This is the foramen of 
Monro !' However, it was at last conceded that there was a foramen, but that 
it was known before Monro's time ! yet we do not remember to whom the 
honor of the discovery was generally attributed, but certainly not to Sweden- 
borg. This gTeat man, however, was not always to be denied the credit which 
was due to him, for a writer in the Intellectual Repository for 1824, page 170, took 
up the cudgels, and proved Swedenborg's title to the discovery, though up to 
this date we do not remember any treatise on the brain, in which the author 
even alludes to Swedenborg. Monro's first intimation in public of his discovery, 
was on the 13th of December, 1764, when he read a paper to the Phil. Soc. of 
Edinburgh on the subject : but in his work, entitled ' Observations on the 
Structure and Functions of the Nervous System," he says, that he demonstrated the 
foramen to his pupils as early as the year 1753. Monro allows that a commu- 
nication was known to exist between these two ventricles and the third, long 
prior to his time ; but he shows that it was never demonstrated or delineated in 
the manner he had done, nor in any way that could convey any precise idea 
concerning it — * much less was implied the existence of the foramen.' The 
channel of communication, which was admitted by the anatomists, seemed to 
be referred to the posterior, or back part of the lateral ventricles ; -whilst the 
foramen Monro described, is situated at the anterior or front part of the ventricle. 
Now, says the writer in the Repository, in the ' Regnum Animale of Sweden- 
borg,' p. 207, the following striking observation occurs :— ' Foramina communi- 
cantia in cerebro vocantur anus et vulva prseter meatum, sen emissarium lym- 
phsB, quibus, ventriculi laterales inter se, et cum tertio, communicant,' — which 
may be thus translated : ' The communicating foramina in the cerebrum are 
called anus and vulva, beside the passage or emissary canal of the lymph ; by these 
the lateral ventricles communicate with each other, and with the third ventricle.' 
This work was printed in 1744, or nine years prior to the earliest notice by Dr. 
Monro, of the foramen in question ! The motion of the brain also, the first 
description of which is attributed to John Daniel Schlichting, by Blumenbach in 
his Inst. Physiol, 1 787, section 201 , was first noticed by Swedenbo rg. Blumenbach 
refers to Schlichting's Comment. Litter., Nov., 1744, p. 409. But the discovery 
seems due to Swedenborg, as he fully described it in the * (Economia Regni 
Animalis,' 1740, Nos. 349 and 458, which was published before Schlichting 
wrote. This was noticed in the ' Monthly Magazine' for May, 1841, pp. 448, 
460. The discovery amounted to this, that when the lungs shrink or empty 
themselves in expiration, the brain rises ; but when they swell or expand them- 
selves in inspiration, the brain sinks. The writer in the ' Monthly Magazine' 
says : — 

" * Another discovery of Dr. Wilson,* concerning the vacuum which takes 
place when the blood is expelled from the contracted cavities, into which 
vacuum, according to the common laws of Derivation, the neighboring blood 
must rush, being prevented, by means of the valves, from regurgitating — is due 
to Swedenborg.' 

*' In the * CEcononiia Regni Animalis,' Swedenborg also gives a mechanical 

*An Inquiry into the Moving Powers employed in the Circulation of the Blood. See also 
Dr. Young's Croonian Lecture in the Phil. Trans, for 1809. 



HIS DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE. 203 

and geometrical analysis of the globules of the blood, from which he derives all 
the tissues of the body — 

" Here [says the same author] he also commences to treat of the motions of the 
human body ; a subject of which indeed he may be considered the discoverer. 
He demonstrates that the brain has a respiratory motion, a rising and falling 
synchronous with the inspirations and expirations of the lungs, by means of 
which falling the nervous fluid (fluidum spirituosum) is propelled all over the 
system, while the expansion of the brain draws the same fluid from the blood 
(of which it is the life) through the capillaries of the carotids, into the cortical 
substance {corcula cerebri) and so back into the nervous circulation. Set the brain 
in motion (says Swedenborg significantly) and you will see the use of all its parts. 
This motion generates the motions of the lungs, which react upon those of the 
brain and serve as a subsidiary and external attractive cause of the circulation 
of the nervous fluid, of which the motions of the brain serve as the internal 
cause. Nor is respiration confined to the lungs, but by their means as well as 
by the brain, is introduced into all tlie viscera ; the whole being in a state of al- 
ternate swell and subsidence ; which constitutes their life and activity, and ex- 
cites them perpetually into the performance of their functions. Thus, with 
Swedenborg, definite structure has definite function ; and definite function is 
nothing more than definite motion ; Qualis determinatio substantiarum,^ talis acci- 
dentium et rmtuum, quas substantias^ sicut stratos ponticulos percurrunt. Every fibre 
has its own fluxion. 

" The same writer subsequently claims for him the * whole doctrine ' of the 
atomic theory with much show of truth, and next alludes to the composition of 
water, which Swedenborg laid down geometrically, stating the chemical equiva- 
lents of its components to be of the values of 8 and 1, always calling water, 
which is the formula of the present day, 9. These are very striking proofs of 
the wonderful genius and expansive mind of Swedenborg. But if it was said 
of Goldsmith, by Johnson in his epitaph, that he left no subject of human learn- 
ing untouched, and never touched any subject that he did not adorn, how much 
more applicable is the sentiment to the illustrious Swede ! /We have seen that 
in philosophy, mineralogy, magnetism, anatomy, physiology, algebra, ethics, 
theology, and geometry, he excelled all other authors of his age, we have now to 
view him in the light of an astronomer. 

" Herschel discovered first in the year 1781, a seventh planet ; but Sweden- 
borg so early as 1745, in his work on the Worship and Love of God, § 11, speaks 
of seven primary planets ; he even mentions seven planets in his Principia 
Rerum Naturalium, published in 1734. 

" We have at length, we think, placed such acts of Swedenborg's wonderful 
powers of mind before the reader that we can hardly suppose that he now 
entertains the same opinion of that great man as when he commenced the pe- 
rusal of this article. He can surely no longer subscribe to the foolish and 
wicked story of his madness — invented by one Mathesiu^, a Lutheran minister, 
who afterwards went mad himself {see ' Documents j" p. 145, «i ante etpostea) oi 
credit the report of his being a visionary. Visionaries do not deal in geometry, 
and algebra, and mathematics, nor do they make great discoveries in the brain. 

" In conclusion, we record our opinion positively, and not relatively ; wholly, 
and without reservation, that if the mode of reasoning and explanation adopted 



204 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

by Swedenborg be once understood, the anatomist and physiologist will acquire 
more information, and obtain a more comprehensive view of the human body, 
iand its relation to a higher sphere, than from any suigle book ever published ; 
nay, we may add, than from all the books which have been written (especially 
in modem times) on physiology, or, as it has been lately named, transcendental 
anatomy. 

*' Swedenborg reasons not on any hypothesis, not on any theory, not on any 
favorite doctrine of a fashionable school, but on the solid principles of geome- 
try, based on the immutable rock of truth : and he must and will be considered 
at no distant period the Zoroaster of Europe, and the Prometheus of a new era 
of reason, however at present the clouds of prejudice may intervene, or the 
storms of passion obscure the coruscations of his intellect." 

In this connection we extract from the London " Forceps" for Nov. 1844, the fol- 
lowing summary view of " Animal Kingdom.'* 

" This, is the most remarkable theory of the human body that has ever fal- 
len into our hands ; and by Emanuel Swedenborg, too ! a man whom we had 
always been taught to regard as either a fool, a madman, or an impostor, or 
perhaps an undefinable compound of all the three. Wonders, it seems, never 
will cease, and therefore it were better henceforth to look out for them, and ac- 
cept them whenever they present themselves, and make them into ordinary 
things in that way. For thereby we may be saved from making wonderful 
asses of ourselves and our craft, for enlightened posterity to laugh at. 

" To return to our book, we can honestly assure our readers (which is more 
than it would be safe to do in all cases), that we have carefully read through 
both volumes of it, bulky though they be, and have gained much philosophical 
insight from it into the chains of ends and causes that govern in the human or- 
ganism. What has the world been doing for the past century, to let this great 
system slumber on the shelf, and to run after a host of little bluebottles of hypo- 
theses which were never framed to live for more than a short part of a single 
season ? It is clear that it yet * knows nothing of its greatest men.' The fact is, 
it has been making money, or trying to make it, and grubbing after worthless 
reputation, until it has lost its eyesight for the stars of heaven and the sun that 
is shining above it. 

" Emanuel Swedenborg's doctrine is altogether the widest thing of the kind 
which medical literature affords, and cast into an artistical shape of consummate 
beauty. Under the rich drapery of ornament which diversifies his pages, there 
runs a framework of the truest reasoning. The book is a perfect mine of prin- 
ciples, far exceeding in intellectual wealth, and surpassing in elevation, the 
finest efforts of Lord Bacon's genius. It treats of the loftiest subjects without 
abstruseness, being all ultimately referable to the common sense of mankind. 
Unlike the German transcendentalists, this gifted Swede fulfils both the requi- 
sites of the true philosopher ; he is one * to whom the lowest things ascend, 
and the highest descend, who is the equal and kindly brother of all' There is 
no trifling about him, but he sets forth his opinions, irrespective of controversy, 
with a plaimiess of affirmation which cannot be mistaken ,- and in such close 
and direct terms, that to give a full idea of his system in other words would re- 
quire that we lesser men should write larger volumes than his ov^ni. 



HIS DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE. 205 

" The plan of the work is this : Swedenborg first gives extracts from the 
greatest anatomists of his own and former times, such as Malpighi, Leuwenhoek, 
Morgagni, Swammerdam, Heister, Winslow, &c. &c., so that these volumes 
contain a body of old anatomy (translated now into close English) such as can- 
not be met with in this shape elsewhere. He then gives his own unencumber- 
ed deductions from this * experience,' under tlie heading ' analysis.' Each organ 
of the thorax and abdomen in this way has a two-fold chapter allotted to its 
consideration, which chapter is a complete little essay, or we may say, epic, 
upon the subject. The philosophical unity of the work is astonishing, and 
serves to unlock the most abstruse organs, such as the spleen, thymus gland, 
supra-renal capsules, and other parts upon which Swedenborg has dilated with 
an analytic efficacy which the moderns have not even approached ; and of 
which the ancients afforded scarcely an indication. Upon these more mysteri- 
ous organs, we think his views most suggestive and valuable, and worthy of 
the whole attention of the better minds of the medical profession. Of the doc- 
trine of series, since called by the less appropriate term, ' homology,' he has 
afforded the most singular illustrations, not confining hi mself to the law of se- 
ries in the solids, but boldly pushing it into the domain of the fluids, and this 
with an energy of purpose, and a strength of conception and execution, such as 
is rarely shown by * any nine men in these degenerate days.' We opened this 
book with surprise, a surprise grounded upon the name and fame of the author, 
and upon the daring affirmative stand which he takes in limine ; we close it with 
a deep-laid wonder, and with an anxious wish that it may not appeal in vain to 
a profession which may gain s© much, both morally, intellectually, and scien* 
tifically, from the priceless truths contained in its pages." 



In addition to the discoveries above mentioned as fairly due to the genius of Sweden- 
borg, we have gleaned, from different sources, the following items which doubtless be- 
long to the same category. The first is from the Boston " New Jerusalem Magazine" 
for February 1847. 

" The Vitality of the Blood. —It is said in the Bible, ' But flesh with the life thereof, 
which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat ' (Gen. ix. 4). And the opinion that 
the blood was a living substance has existed from the remotest antiquity. Har- 
vey, the celebrated discoverer of the circulation of the blood, held this opinion 
very strongly, and it has been adopted by some other learned men at different 
times, as may be seen in the works of Good, Carpenter, Elliotson, and others on 
Medicine or Physiology. But it was never, — at least in modern times, — gener- 
ally received, and was held by all who maintained it, only hypothetically, and 
as a supposition of greater or less probability. From this we must, however, 
except Swedenborg. In his philosophical works, written more than one hun- 
dred years ago, he distinctly asserts the vitality of the blood, not only as a truth, 
but as a fundamental truth of all sound physiology. The Swedenborg Society 
of London have just pubhshed a thin volume of his « Opuscula,' or little works, 
in the original Latin, from his manuscripts in the library of the Royal Academy 
of Stockholm. One of these little works is * De Sanguine Rubro' — ' Of the 
Red Blood.' We do not propose to give an account of his views on this subject ; 
for they are so exceedingly condensed in this small treatise, that a further 



206 DOCUMENTS CONCERNINCJ SWEDENBORG. 

abridgement would be unintelligible. It is enough to say, that he declares the 
blood to be more than merely living matter ; it stands, as it were, half-way be- 
tween spirit and matter, partaking of the qualities of both ; it is as if the point 
of contact between the soul and the body ; and from it, or rather through it, the 
body derives its lif^ Thus the heading of the eleventh chapter, of this treatise 
is, ' That the globule of the red blood contains in itself purer blood and the 
animal spirit, and that the purest essence and soul of the body is here ; so that 
the red blood is a spirituous and animated humor' (humor spirituosus et ani- 
matus). The heading of the next chapter is, 'That the red blood partakes 
almost equally of soul and body, and that it may be called as well spiritual as 
material.' 

" Now it is an interesting circumstance, that while this long-neglected work 
was passing through the press, science has at last, and by accident, discovered 
the vitality of the blood, and placed this fact upon a firm basis. The number 
of Silliman's Journal, just published, contains, on page 108, under the head of 
' Researches on blood,' some experiments of the celebrated chemist^ M. Dumas, 
published by him in June last. After some account of his experiments and 
their results, the statement goes on thus : in attempting to overcome this diffi- 
culty, * M. Dumas discovered the remarkable property of the blood globules, 
that as long as they were in contact with the air or aerated water, in short, as 
long as they were in the arterial condition, the saline solution containing them 
passed colorless through the filter, and left them upon it : on the contrary, as 
soon as the globules have assumed the violet tint of venous blood, the liquid 
passes colored.' After detailing certain experiments then tried by Dumas in 
consequence of this discovery, the following statement is made : — * Thiis the 
globules of the blood seem to possess vitality, as they can resist the solvent action of sulphate 
of soda as long as their life continues, but yield to this action readily when they have 
fallen into asphyxia from privation of air.' " 



The same Magazine for Nov. 1830, contains the following : 

Science of Crystallography. — " It is generally known that Swedenborg had much 
celebrity as a scientific man, before he began to publish his theological works. 
He was the author of several volumes on various departments of natural science, 
which are now little known. Some of the members of the New Church have 
partially examined a few of them, and it is said, that there are indications which 
make it probable that the germs of many later discoveries might be found in 
them. We have no means of judging how this may be ; but we hope that it 
will not be long before those who have the leisure and ability to pursue these 
inquiries, will do so. We make these remarks, because we have lately met 
with an acknowledgment of his scientific merit, of some interest. The science 
of Crystallography is of recent origin, and has lately attracted the notice of some 
very able men. Nearly all simple substances and many of the compounds found 
in nature have regular forms. These are of almost every variety of shape, but 
each substance- Aa5 its own,- and this original figure, as it may be called, often 
serves to distinguish substances which it would be difficult otherwise to discrim- 
inate. The basis of the science is an analysis of the various figures, so that 
they may be reduced to a very few simple forms, which by addition one to the 



HIS DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE. 207 

other may make all the existing varieties. This subject is mentioned in a work 
on * Chemical Philosophy,' recently published in Paris, consisting of a course 
of lectures delivered in the college of France by M. Dumas ; a gentleman of 
much and deserved celebrity. There is a notice of this work in the forty-fifth 
number of the Foreign Quarterly Review, pubhshed in London. M. Dumas dis- 
tinctly ascribes to Svvedenborg the origin of the modern science of crystallogra- 
phy. He says, ' It is then to him we are indebted, for the first idea of making 
cubes, tetraedes, pyramids, and the different crystalline forms, by grouping the 
spheres ; and it is an idea which has since been renewed by several distinguished 
men, Wollaston in particular.' The r^iewer afterwards says, that -the systems 
of Svvedenborg and Wollaston differ essentially, but he does not state wherein 
the difference consists." 



From the same work for December 1842, we extract the following ; 

" Swederiborg the Inventor of the Air- Tight Stoves. — The air-tight stove, which has 
come into very extensive use in this country within three or four years, was 
patented, if we recollect right, by Dr. Orr of Washington City. The vahdity of 
the patent has been recently tried in one of our courts of justice in this 
city, and the case was dismissed on the ground that the specifications of the 
patent was not sufficiently explicit. It appears by an article in the February 
number of the Intellectual Repository, that the principle of this stove was dis- 
covered and made known by Swedenborg more than a century ago. His 
scientific treatise, describing the new invention of a stove, and other things, is 
said to have gone through these editions. (The Repository goes at large into 
the proof of Swedenborg's claim and a detailed description of the stove, which 
our limits compel us to omit.)" 



The London New Church Quarterly Review, No. 1, (January, 1847) contains an 
elaborate article on Swedenborg's Principia, from which it would appear that, in the 
writer's estimation, the work falls little short of Newton's Principia. The following is 
mentioned as one of Swedenborg's remarkable anticipations. 

Swedenborg the Discoverer of the Identity of Electricity and Lightning. — '*One 
striking and remarkable fact we are bound to notice — the identity of elec- 
tricity and lightning. It was in June 1752, we believe, that Franklin's cele- 
brated experiment was performed, by which this identity was estabhshed. Yet 
no less than 19 years previously, namely in 1733, Swedenborg's Principia was 
published, in which this same truth is reasoned out as a minor consequent to his 
philosophy. Such are the coincidences which have never yet failed in us in any 
attempted application of Swedenborg's Philosophy, and which might surprise 
even the skeptic into a belief of the brilliancy and originality of his genius. 



208 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

XLII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF THE 

CELEBRATED SWEDISH CHEMIST BERZELIUS, 

TO THE GENEKAL MERITS 
OF SWEDENBORG'S "ANIMAL KINGDOM." 



This distinguished philosopher has given the following testimony to the scientific 
merits of the " Animal Kingdom" written by his illustrious countryman. It is from 
a letter published in the Intellectual Repository for May, 1845, acknowledging the 
receipt of an English copy of several of the works pubHshed by the *"* Swedenborg 
Association." 

" The Academy of Sciences desires me to communicate the expression of their 
grateful thanks both to the Society for Printing the Works of Swedenborg, and 
■ to yourself, for this very handsome present. Permit me also to add my cordial 
thanks for the second volume of the Animal Kingdom, for a copy of vt^hich I am 
indebted to your obliging kindness. During my recovery I have gone through 
some parts of this work, which have interested me specially; and I have been 
surprised to find how the mind of Swedenborg has preceded the present state of 
knowledge, writing his work at the time when he did. I hope the anatomists 
and physiologists of our day will profit by this work, both for the sake of extend- 
ing their ideas, and of rendering justice to the genius of Swedenborg." 



XLIII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

J.J. G.WILKINSON, 

TO swedenborg's general merit 

AS A MAN OF SCIENCE AND A PHILOSOPHER. 

{From the Introduction to the *' Animal Kingdom") 



"We cannot forbear presenting in this connection the following eloquent view of Swe- 
denborg's scientific character from the pen of this accomplished translator, Mr. J. J. G. 
Wilkinson, It occurs in his Introduction to the " Animal Kingdom," p. xlv. 

" He was a naturalized subject in all the kingdoms of human thought, and yet 
was born at the same time to another order and a better country. To the vari- 



EXTRACTS FROM THE MONTHLY REVIEW. 209 

oils classes of schoolmen he appears never to have attached himself, excepting 
for different purposes from theirs. He pursued mathematics for a distinctly ex- 
traneous end. As a student of physiology he belonged to no clique or school, 
and had no class of prejudices to encounter. In theology he was almost as free 
mentally, as though not a single commentator had written or system been 
formed, but as though his hands were the first in which the Word of God was 
placed in its virgin purity. Add to this that he by no means disregarded the 
works of others, but was learned in all useful learning. He had a sound prac- 
tical education, and was employed daily in the actual business of life for a se- 
ries of years. He was thoroughly acquainted with mechanics, chemistry, math- 
ematics, astronomy, and the other sciences as known in his time, and had eli- 
cited universal truths in the sphere of each. From the beginning he perceived 
that there was an order in nature. This enabled him to pursue his own studies 
with a view to order. He ascended from the theory of earthy substances to the 
theory of the atmospheres, and from both to the theory of cosmogony, and came 
gradually to man as the crowning object of nature. He brought the order of the 
macrocosm to illustrate the order of the microcosm. His dominant end, which 
he never lost sight of for a moment, was spiritual and moral, which preserved 
his mind alive in a long course of physical studies, and empowered him to see 
life and substance in the otherwise dead machinery of the creation. He was a 
man of uncommon humbleness, and never once looked back, to gratify self- 
complacency, upon past achievements, but travelled onwards and still onwards, 
* without fatigue and without repose,' to a home in the fruition of the infinite 
and eternal. Such was the competitor who now entered the arena of what had, 
until this time, been exclusively medical science ; truly a man of whom it is not 
too much to say, that he possessed the kindhest, broadest, highest, most theo- 
retical and most practical genius that it has yet pleased God to bestow on the 
weary ages of civilization." 



XLIV. 

EXTRACTS 

FROM THE EARLIER VOLUMES 
OF THE LONDON MONTHLY REVIEW, 

RESPECTING 

SWEDENBORG'S THEOLOGICAL WORKS. 



The ensuing articles are presented to the reader simply as a literary curiosity. They 
consist of perhaps the earliest notices of several of Swedenborg's theological works on 
their first appearance in English. To one who can now look abroad over the hundreds 
of churches and thousands of believers that, from the profoundest conviction, regard 
Swedenborg as the selected and illuminated herald of the New Jerusalem, it canno^ but 



210 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

be a matter of interest to learn with what reception those marvellous developments 
met when first announced, in our vernacular speech, to the Christian world. As might 
be supposed, the writers regard them as the outbirth of a crazed enthusiasm, and the 
index reference to one of them is thus worded : " Swedenborg, a remarkable fanatic of 
the present age, account of." But the reader will still perceive a certain under-tone of 
surprise indicating a misgiving in their judgment, a latent suspicion that after all there 
is too much method in this madness to allow of its being considered as pure dementia. 
How little did they dream that the time would come when not the adoption, but the 
rejection, of these doctrines and disclosures would be an impeachment of mental sanity ! 
— The first is a notice of 

THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION.* 

«« 111 our Review for June, 1770, we gave an account of a small quarto volume, 
containing some of Baron Swedenborg's lucubrations ; and which was proba- 
bly intended as an introduction to farther publications of the same kind. In 
that work, we had some information concerning the family, rank, and office, as 
also of the peculiar turn and disposition of this extraordinary person. The pre- 
sent much larger performance, containing upwards of. 500 pages, presents us 
with the same enthusiastic reveries, and unaccountable sallies of imagination, 
of which a specimen was given in the book above-mentioned. We observe in 
it the marks of natural good sense and ingenuity, as well as of application and 
learning; but intermixed with so much mysticism, and farther accompanied 
with such astonishing accounts of what the Author has seen and heard when 
he was admitted to converse with angels and spirits in the invisible world, that, 
though his relations are delivered in a plausible and coherent manner, it is im- 
possible not to conclude that they are the productions of a disordered brain. 
We meet continually with these memorabilia, as they are called, which, it might 
have been supposed, were only intended as a kind of allegories to diversify his 
work, and by this means to amuse and more strongly to impress his readers : 
but he asserts with the greatest coolness and confidence that he has frequently 
been admitted, during the last twenty-seven years of his life, into the unseen 
worlds, and that the accounts he gives are not chimeras or inventions, but 
founded on what he has truly seen and heard ; and this not m a kind of dream 
or vision, but when he was fully awake. 

*' The baron has conceived some notion of a great alteration which took place 
in the spiritual world in the year 1757, when, if we understand him right, the 
New Church, or Nova Hierosolyma, as he elsewhere calls it, began to be erected 
and the last judgment {ultimum judicium) was held in the world of spirits, which, 
says he, I do attest, because, when I was broad awake, I beheld it with 
mine own eyes. He tells us that all that is said in the scriptures concerning a 
new heaven and a new earth, and the second advent of Christ, is to be explained 
and understood, not literally, but in a spiritual manner. 

" The doctrine and practice of this new church, of which our Author seems to 
consider himself as a special messenger, are laid before us in this volume. We 
observe, that he strenuously asserts the unity of the Deity, although he acknowl- 
edges a Trinity ; but, at the same time, declares, that this Trinity was not till the 

* " Vera Christiana Religio : continens universam Theologiam novce EcclesicB a Domino 
apud Danielem, cap. vii. 13, 14, et in Apocalypsi, cap. xxi. 1, 2, prcedictcB. The True 
Christian Religion : containing the whole Theology of the New Church, &c. By Eman- 
uel ^wedenborg, a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. 4to. Amsterdam, 1771." 



EXTRACTS FROM THE MONTHLY REVIEW. 211 

appearance of Christ, when the Supreme God united himself to the man Christ 
Jesus. He contends that a trinity of persons was not the primitive faith of the 
church, and that, by the Nicene and Athanasian trinity, the whole Christian 
church has been perverted. He is a warm advocate for charity and good works, 
he abhors the notion that faith alone is requisite to salvation, and speaks of the 
doctrine of predestination as detestable. 

" His account of the decalogue, of which he gives what he calls the natural, 
spiritual and celestial meaning, is very imperfect, as the second commandment 
is omitted, and the tenth divided into two, to form the ninth and tenth : This we 
have heard has been done in the church of Rome, but we apprehend has not 
been the practice in Protestant churches. 

« Concerning the spiritual world which Baron Swedenborg has so frequently 
visited, he tells us that there are in it lands, plains and valleys, mountains and 
hills, as in our earth ; that there are also fountains arid rivers, gardens, groves 
and woods, houses, palaces and cities, writings, books, offices, and em- 
ployments, gold, silver, precious stones, &c., as there are also in ours; but 
that all these things are created in an instant according to the ideas and affections 
which arise among the angels and spirits who inhabit those regions. In the dif- 
ferent visits this writer has paid to them, he has conversed, we are told, with 
many persons of every rank and of all nations and countries. In the close of 
the present work, he gives a short account of the situation allotted to the inhabi- 
tants of different countries or religious professions, and to some of the more re- 
markable individuals among them. Possibly the curiosity of some of our read- 
ers may be excited to hear what is the state of our own countrymen according 
to the relation of this noble visionary ; but we doubt whether the view of it will 
contribute much either to their edification or amusement." 

(The writer then proceeds to give the substance of Swedenborg's relation respecting 
the English in the spiritual world, which, as it is accessible in his works, we omit. 
He then concludes by saying :) 

" Although this remarkable production abounds with such amazing conceits 
and extravagancies, it must be regarded as a curiosity of enthusiasm, and may 
afford some entertainment to those who understand Latin, and have leisure for 
the perusal of so large a volume."— M. R. Vol. XLV. 1772, p. 580. 



The next is a notice of 

HEAVEN AND HELL.* 

" Count (Baron) Swedenborg is certainly to be ranked among the wonders of the 
age ; for though enthusiasts and visionaries have arisen at all times, it is very rare 
to meet with one who so calmly, yet confidently, and with so much simplicity and 
cool reasoning, relates the frequent interviews he has had with the world of 
spirits. He informs us of many conversations which he held, on a variety of 
subjects, with angels ; he talks distinctly of their appearance, their garments, 
their habitations, their language, governments, &c. &c. and at the same time he 
seems to speak against the imaginary reveries of visionaries and enthusiasts, 
not having the smallest apprehension that he himself may be reckoned in the 
number. Let the reader only attend to the following short passage, taken from 

* " A Treatise concerning Heaven and Hell ; containing a Relatic.i of many wonder- 
ful things therein, as heard and seen by the Author, the Honorable Emanuel Sweden- 
borg, of the Senatorial Order of Nobles in the Kingdom of Sweden. Now first trans- 
lated from the original Latin. 4to. 10s. 6d. boards. Phillips. 1778." 



212 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

the section on the habitations of angels : *As often as I have conversed with the 
angels, face to face, it was in their habitations which are like to our houses on 
earth, but far more beautiful and magnificent; having rooms, chambers, and 
apartments, in great variety, as also spacious courts belonging to them ; toge- 
ther with gardens, parterres of flowers, fields, &c. Where the angels are formed 
into societies, they dwell in contiguous habitations, disposed after the manner 
of our cities, in streets, walks, and squares : I have had the privilege to walk 
through them, to examine all round about me, and to enter their houses; and 
this when I was fully awake, having my inward eyes opened. I have seen also 
the palaces in heaven, the magnificence of which exceeds description, the roofs 
glittering as with pure gold, and the floors as with precious stones : but some 
more splendid than others; the inner apartments likewise were ornamented 
beyond all human conception. On the south side were gardens, where all things 
appeared with radiant lustre, certain trees bearing leaves of a silver hue, and 
fruit that glittered like burnished gold, whilst flowers in the borders, by a beau- 
tiful arrangement of their colors, presented, as it were, rainbows to the eyes of 
the spectator : at the end of the walks fresh palaces rose to view, and termin- 
ated the prospect. Such is the architecture and beautiful scenery in heaven ; 
insomuch that it may well be said, that the very principle of art appears there 
in its effects, and no wonder, when we consider such art is heavenly : and yet 
the angels said, that not only like things, but others beyond number, of still 
higher degrees of perfection, were at times exhibited to their view, by the good- 
ness of the Lord, for their recreation and entertainment ; and yet that the intel- 
lectual pleasure they received therefrom was greater than the sensible, and that, 
because in all and singular of those objects they discerned correspondency, and 
through their correspondents, the divine things which they represented.' 

" In whatever light we regard this Author, there is something truly astonish- 
ing in him and his writings. He was a man of eminence and distinction in his 
country; of respected estimation, we are told, in the royal family during the 
late reigns ; he had held an honorable employment under the crown ; had a con- 
siderable share of learning ; and in private life was irreproachable ; beside which 
it is said, that during more than the last thirty years of his life, at the expense 
of his fortune, and the sacrifice of worldly enjoyments, he was indefatigable in 
his labors to instruct the world in important truths relating to salvation. 

" In a preface, which shows the sincerity and piety of its writer, our Transla- 
tor urges all that can be said to procure credit and respect to his Author and his 
narrations, and farther observes, ' we have to add, on the credit of two worthy 
persons (one of them a learned physician who attended him in his last sick- 
ness), that he confirmed the truth of all that he had published relating to his 
communications with the world of spirits, by his solemn testimony, a very short 
time before he departed this life, in London, Anno Dom. 1772.' 

" On such, and other considerations, the works of Count (?) Swedenborg are 
here recommended to the serious attention of the reader : * If, after all,' says the 
translator, * thou canst not read him as the enlightened seer, and the extraordi- 
nary messenger of important news from the other world, read him as the Chris- 
tian divine and the sage interpreter of scripture ; read him as the judicious 
moralist, and acute metaphysician ; or read him as the profound philosopher ; 
or if he cannot please in any of these characters, read him at least as the inge- 
nious author of a divine romance : but if neither as such he can give content, 



EXTRACTS FROM THE MONTHLY REVIEW. 213 

I have only to add, go thy way, and leave the book to those that know how to 
make a better use of it; and such I trust are not a few among the serious, behig 
willing to hope, for the honor of our country, that if such a ludicrous represent- 
ation of hell, as passes under the title of The Visions of Don Quevedo, could make 
its way among us through no less than ten editions, there will not be wanting 
in the land, a sufficient number of persons of sober reflection and contempla- 
tive minds, to give all due encouragement to a work so well calculated, as this 
is, to promote true wisdom and godliness, by credible testimonies to the world 
of spirits, and to the respective states and conditions of departed souls.' 

" For a farther account of this extraordinary person, and of his works, see 
Review, Vol, xlii. p. 445. Art. * Theosophic Lucubrations on the Nature of Influx , 
Sfc. By the honorable and learned Emanuel Swedenborg.* " — M. R. Vol. LIX. 
1778, p. 365. 

Th*e remaining notice is of 

THE HEAVENLY DOCTRINE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM.* 

" The Translator informs us, that this work is called the Doctrine of the New 
Jerusalem, because by the New Jerusalem, according to our author, is signified 
the New Church upon earth, which is now about to be established by the Lord; 
and which was foretold, and is particularly described, as to its glory and ex- 
cellence, in the 21st chapter of the Revelation, and in many other parts of the 
sacred Word. The account which our author gives of this important matter is 
as follows : — The old Christian Church, which was formerly founded by the 
Lord, is now at its period, or consummation, in consequence of its successive 
corruptions in life and doctrine ; for where genuine charity and genuine faith 
are extinguished, there the church is at an end ; inasmuch as charity and faith, 
operating in the hearts and actions of men, alone constitute the Hfe and exis- 
tence of the church. It hath therefore pleased the Lord of his mercy, to the end 
that his kingdom may still remain upon earth, and that he may thence be sup- 
plied with members for his glorious kingdom in Heaven, to begin at this time 
the establishment of the new church which he had foretold, and to reveal the 
doctrine of that church in our author's writings. This doctrine is called Heavenly, 
because it is founded on the spiritual sense of the Word of God, and was re- 
vealed to our author, as he expressly declareth, immediately from the Lord out 
of Heaven, whilst he was reading the Word. 

" Possibly when the doctrine here taught is stripped of its peculiar garb, it will 
be found to mean nothing more than that real piety, integrity, and goodness of 
heart, which all good men must plead for, and earnestly wish to see universally 
prevail. The translator and editor of this tract, has, we suppose, different 
views of the subject, and firmly believes in its author as an inspired pro- 
phet, raised up to reform the Church. As we shall not dispute with him on this 
head, we will only hold, that while we cannot but consider the late Count (.') 
Swedenborg as an enthusiast of the first order, we must also regard him as a 
most extraordinary, and, indeed, a most wonderful man !" — M. R. Vol. LXIII. 
1785, p. 554. 

* ** -4 Treatise concerning the New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine, as revealed from 
Heaven, to which are prefixed some observations concerning the New Heaven and the New 
Earth. Translated from the Latin of the Hon. Emanuel Swedenborg, of the Senatorial 
Order of Nobles in the kingdom of Sweden." 8vo. London. 1785. 



214 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

AN ESTIMATE OF SWEDENBORG 

AS THE EXPOUNDER 

OF THE GOOD, THE TRUE, AND THE BEAUTIFUL. 

{From a Swedish periodical entitled Mimer.) . 



The following ably drawn sketch of Swedenborg as standing in relation to the higher 
departments of literature and as having struck to previously unknown depths in the 
development of the Beautiful in Nature and Art, though it appeared originally in a 
Swedish periodical, as indicated ' above, yet it was transferred from thence into the 
German and inserted by Dr. Tafel in his Magazine for the True Christian Religion, and 
from that translated into English and brought out in the Intellectual Repository of 
June, 1841. 

" Three celebrated men in Sweden have distmguished themselves by writing 
sublimely and beautifully on the beautiful ; Swedenborg, to whom Love was 
everything, as well as the relation established by love, between the True and the 
Good ; Thorild, to whom Nature was everything, as well as the relation established 
by nature between Power and Harmony ; Ehrenstdrd, to whom Art was everything 
as well as the relation established by art between Genius and the Ideal. In the 
paper before us, the theosopher Swedenborg is considered chiefly as a thinker 
and writer on the beautiful. The esthetic* views of Ehrensvard and Thorild are 
easily accessible, partly from their own writings, and partly from extracts and 
expositions, which have lately appeared. But Swedenborg's views are not so 
easily accessible : the cause is to be found in a two-fold difficulty ; first, because 
his sBsthetic view of the world cannot be properly seen, before we have become 
acquainted with his views in general ; and, secondly, because he has not devoted 
a particular work or section to the subject. From a multitude of extensive 
works, written in Latin, we must bring together what he has said on this sub- 
ject. His ideas on this topic are scattered in his treatises on his principal doc- 
trines, especially concerning Life as being Love ; on God and his unity, as being 
the original, prototypal, one only divine Man, from whom all finite created men 
derive that which constitutes them men ; on the creation of all beings and sub- 
stances, as receptacles of Life and Love, and on the destination of man, who, 
created with a will for the reception of the Divine love, and with an understanding 
for the reception of the Divine wisdom, has a finite esse and existere, corresponding, 
when constituted in order, to the infinite esse and existere in God ; on the Good 
and the True ; on the Spheres, Degrees, and Correspondences of creation : on 
the relation between the different circles of life, descending by degrees from the 
highest to the lowest of created existences, and connected together in one uni- 

*^^sthetic is a term which signifies the sensation and perception of the Beautiful in 
Mind, in Nature, and in Art ; it was originated as a science by the celebrated Baum- 
garten, and is a branch of philosophy much cultivated in Germany ; it is derived from 
aisthesis. 



THE GOOD, THE TRUE, AND THE BEAUTIFUL. 215 

versa! harmonic whole by the laws of analogy and correspondence : but espe- 
cially in that part of his writings in which he represents marriage as the emblem 
of the eternal union in God of Love and Wisdom, and likewise of the conjunc- 
tion between himself and his church as grounded in that union established in 
the minds of men. In describing this delightful union, which is the ground and 
source of all virtue and happiness to the intelligent universe, Swedenborg says 
much respecting ihe angels, and the state of harmony and bliss in which they 
live. In treating on these subjects, he was led to exhibit loveliness and beauty 
in its objective form, in the persons of angels, who were once men upon earth, 
but who, becoming regenerate, that is, filled as to their wills with the divine 
love, and as to their understandings, with the divine wisdom, are in the enjoy- 
ment of that state in which all is harmony, perfection, and bliss, and which is 
properly called heaven ; for all the affections and dispositions of the soul, are 
imaged and reflected in their personal forms of loveliness and beauty. It is here 
where the beautiful in mind, in nature, and in art, has its origin, whence de- 
scend ing into the ultimate spheres and regions of creation, called the natural 
world, it gives rise to everything beautiful and lovely we behold. Swedenborg 
thus traces the origin of science and art to heaven, where they dwell in their 
fullest manifestation, as offsprings of Divine Wisdom itself. There is something 
truly sublime in thus tracing everything good and true in science and art to the 
great first Cause, and to see the relation which they bear to the Divine Wisdom as 
the parent of all knowledge, science, and genuine philosophy. 

" Swedenborg often describes the dark shades of ignorance and earthly gross- 
ness, in which the minds of men,— even of those who enjoy great reputation for 
learning and science, — were enveloped. He endeavors to show that the learning 
of his age was extremely superficial, and entangled in the fallacies of gross sen- 
sual-mindedness, and consequently, in doubt, levity, mutual misunderstanding, 
senseless and unmeaning terminologies, and above all, in a disposition to de- 
spise depth and solidity in human knowledge, and to cling only to what is 
material, superficial, and obvious to the senses, as the only thing certain, and 
the only thing worthy of investigation and possession. Swedenborg boldly 
placed him self in opposition to this spirit of his age. As he moved extensively 
in the thinking world, he saw men in general satisfied with the sea-weed and 
rubbish that float on the surface of the ocean of truth ; whereas he dived into 
the depths, and brought up pearls and gems of peculiar beauty and lustre. 

" As a powerful and extraordinary opposition against this superficial spirit of 
his age, Emanuel Swedenborg, about the middle of the last century, placed him- 
self in bold array. He was universally known amongst the learned of Europe, 
and enjoyed great celebrity as a profound thinker in ever;y branch of science and 
learning. At this period he suddenly stood up as a theosopher and seer of 
spirits. Nobody could comprehend what had happened to the sagacious, pene- 
trating, scientific, philosophical, much-knowing Swedenborg, — a man who had 
taken all the sciences uader his protection and culture, and guarded them, by 
his profound mathematical knowledge, against the intrusion of vain speculative 
theories. He was already declining from the meridi6,n of life, and had been en- 
nobled by his country, and still more by his talents and virtues. Some consid- 
ered him as a heretic, some as an enthusiast and deluder, and others considered 
him as mad : tliis last opinion was thought the most probable and generally be- 



216 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

lieved. Yet how could the man be mad who still continued to develope the 
most sublime views on the Good, the True, the Useful, and the Beautiful ?' How 
could the man be mad, who opened new fields of thought, and gave to the hu- 
man mind w ings, by which it could soar into regions of intelligence, harmony, 
and love hitherto unexplored and unknown ? But this allegation of madness 
appeared the easiest way to explain the possibility how a distinguished mathe- 
matician, mi;chanic, mineralogist, &c., could in a moment, metamorphose him- 
self into a seer of spirits. The celebrity which he had hitherto acquired, was 
not the only result of his researches in mathematics, mechanics, mineralogy, 
and in every branch of physical knowledge; for by his speculations, founded 
on solid principles, he proved himself to be a philosopher, and as such he de- 
veloped, in extensive works, a system of the world founded on principia which 
have solidity itself for their base, and which are supported by the deepest rea- 
soning and research. This system appears to be the ground-work on which he 
afterwards developed his theosophical views. In this view the world is con- 
sidered as an out-birth of a spiritual world, by which the system of nature is ar- 
ranged and governed by mechanical and chemical laws, which correspond to 
spiritual powers and influences operative in the spiritual world ; thus nature, or 
creation, in its most extended sense, has arisen from an infinite central power, 
which, as to its essence, is intelligence, wisdom and love. This system is ar- 
ranged according to the most perfect mechanical, dynamical, and organic laws, 
bound together from first to last, — from inmost to outmost principles, by the 
doctrir^es of series, degrees, analogies, and correspondences. Pursuing his ca- 
reer eVen to the loftiest speculations, until, at length, his writings assume the 
form of a revelation, which is considered as a continuation* of the bibical 
revelation, he has built a spiritual system, which seems grounded upon 
the principia of his natural system, as the superstructure of a house rests 
upon its foundation. If a correct view be formed of his earlier writings, it will 
be found that there is no hiatus in the transit to his later, or his spiritual writ- 
ings ; for he seems to proceed upon the same principles, only elevated to a 
higher sphere, and becoming conversant with more lofty and spiritual subjects. 
The principal difference is, that in his earlier writings he builds upon a mathe- 
matical, logical, philosophical base : whereas, in his subsequent writings, he 
builds upon a bibical, mystical ground.f The principal fault ui Swedenborg's 
writings, is his great diffusiveness. t If the number of quarto volumes, which 
contain his theological and theosophical writing, were condensed into a few. 



* From this it is evident, that the writer had not studied Swedenborg's theological 
writings ; for the supposition, that these writings are a continuation of the revealed 
Word of God, is most incorrect and profane. Swedenborg published his theological 
works, and they are regarded by those who properly understand them, as humble 
handmaids, to assist the devout mind to an enlightened and spiritual discernment of 
God's Holy Word, and to instruct mankind respecting heaven and hell, or their states 
after death. 

t Mysticism, which implies sentiments and feelings not traceable to any fixed princi- 
ples of affection and thought, nor to any logical mode of discerning the nature of things, 
is by no means applicable to Swedenborg, who reduces everything to principles, and 
considers every subject in a most logical and systematic manner. Swedenborg himself 
repudiates mysticism. 

\ This diffusiveness is justified by the end which he had in view, that of making every 
thing as plain as possible to the simple and uneducated ; he avoids redundancy as 
much as possible by frequent reference to the articles and paragraphs of his works. 



THE GOOD, THE TRUE, AND THE BEAUTIFUL. 217 

they would be far more easily and more generally read.* His works entitled, 
" Angelic Wisdom, concerning the Divine Love and Wisdom" and •' the Delights of 
Wisdom, concerning Conjugial Love," possess considerable merit. But the most 
beautiful, as to style, which he ever wrote, is the " Worship and J^ove of God," 
which is a kind of middle thing between a philosophic treatise and a romance, 
on the origin of the earth, on the golden age of nature, and of man, on paradise, 
on the birth, youth, education, and love of Adam and Eve. This of all Sweden- 
denborg's works, is that in which the Beautiful is most conspicuous. It is not 
only written in a brilliant and harmonious latinity, but with so much poetic life 
and inspiration, that if divided amongst a dozen poets, it would be sufficient to 
fix every one of them on the heaven of poesy as stars of the first magnitude.! 
This, at least, is certain, that the more we consider his writings in relation to 
Philosophy and Esthetics, the more we must admit, that amongst much dross, 
there is a considerable quantity of pure solid gold.t The holy and exalted state 
of mind in which he comprehended and contemplated the structure and order of 
the universe, and the pure and lofty, yet simple and intelligible manner in which 
he has treated his subjects and presented his views, are perfectly worthy of a 
divinely inspired seer. His visions, or rather, his Memorabilia, as he called them, 
are often very beautiful ; but how they are to be explained is difficult to say ;§ 
this, however, is known, that he himself was perfectly convinced of their ob- 
jective reaUty, and that they were facts and phenomena seen by his spiritual 
eyes in the spiritual world. His followers consider them from the same point 
of view, and believe what Swedenborg says, that they are spiritual realities 
written to instruct us concerning the state of men after death. In proportion as 
we learn properly to understand the writings of Swedenborg, we shall find them 
full of scientific worth, rich in materials of the beautiful for poetry, and highly 
honorable to his native country. ._ , . . ,..- ;:: 1:;. 

* Those who are delighted with spiritual and heavenly things, and with the eternal in- 
terests of their souls, are sorry that he has not written more. 

t Mr. Wilkinson, speaking of this work in his recent "Popular Sketch of Swedenborg's 
Philosophical works" observes ; — " Whatever of admiration we have felt for Swedenborg's 
former efforts, only increases as we enter the interior of this august natural temple. A 
new wealth of principles, a radiant, even power such as peace alone can communicate, a 
discourse of order persuasively convincing, an affecting and substantial beauty more deep 
than poetry, a luxuriance of ornament instinct with the life of the subject; intellect, ima- 
gination, fancy, unitedly awake in a lovely vision of primeval times; wisdom, too, making 
all things human : — such is an imperfect enumeration of the qualities which enter into 
this ripe fruit of the native genius of Swedenborg. Whether in fulness or loftiness, I 
know of nothing similar to it — of nothing second to it — in mere human literature." — B. 

\. From this it plainly appears that the author of this paper is no receiver of the Theologi- 
cal writings of E. S., otherwise he would not speak o\ dross; we must consequently con- 
sider his judgment of E. S. as a writer on natural things, as so much the more impartial. 

§ We have here another instaiJce of the extreme difficulty with which the natural rnird 
can admit the possibility of spiritual existences, separate from what is material; so great is 
the appearance to the merely natural mind, that nothing exists, as an absolute reality, but 
that which can be seen, heard, and felt, that any belief in anything not obvious to the 
senses is treated as chimerical. The only way properly to understand the MerKorabilia is 
to read them as " things heard and seen" in the spiritual world ; every memorable relation 
contains an important lesson of wisdom concerning man's state in the spiritual world which 
could not possibly be communicated so effectually in any other manner. 



218 DOCUMENTS CONCErxNING SWEDENBORG. 

XLVI. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

J. D. MORELL, OF ENGLAND, 

TO THE RANK DUE TO SWEDENBORG AS A PHILOSOPHER. 

{From " An Historical and Critical View of the Speculative Philosophy of Europe 
in the Nineteenth Century.'* Vol. I. p. 315-323.) 



This is a work of high character of which the second revised and enlarged edition has 
jtist appeared from the English Press. In this edition the author aims to make amends 
for the defective and erroneous estimate of Swedenborg contained in the first, and though 
the concessions which we here read are far in advance of anything hitherto accorded to 
Swedenborg by writers of this class, yet the notice is still marred by certain items of 
statement and conclusion which seem to require correction. For this purpose we have 
appended the remarks of the reviewer of the work in the Intellectual Repository for Au- 
gust, 1847. 

*' But the most wide-spread school of religious mysticism, which arose during 
the eighteenth century, was that of Emanuel Swedenborg. To give anything 
approaching to an adequate view of the Swedenborgian philosophy, we feel to 
be a matter of great difficulty, and, indeed, in a brief compass, almost impossi- 
ble. The difficulty of the case arises partly from the amazing fertility of his 
writings, partly from the frequent obscurity with which his thoughts are express- 
ed, and partly from the differences of opinion upon many important points, which 
exist amongst his followers. Although, according to his own testimony, he was 
accustomed from a child to think much upon spiritual things, yet his earlier 
manhood seemed to be altogether engrossed in scientific pursuits. The results 
of these studies exist to the present day in the form of volumes and tracts, 
which travel over almost the whole surface of natural history and science, and 
in which, it is only justice to say are found, more or less obscurely, many of 
the germs of recent and brilliant discoveries. 

" It was in the ' Prodromus,' a brief treatise upon ' The Infinite and the Soul,* 
that the philosophical and theological thinking of Swedenborg began. I say 
philosophical and theological, because it was his firm conviction from the first, 
that revelation and philosophy were fundamentally identical, that all religion 
Was to be made scientific, and all science to be made religious. 

" The first question which suggests itself with reference to the Sweden- 
borgian philosophy, is this. What is the method it proposes, by which truth is to 
be attained ? Some philosophers had attempted to deduce all truth from a priori 
principles ; others had attempted to ascend by an inductive process from the 
particular to the general. What is the methodology that Swedenborg adopted ? 
To answer this question accurately, we should premise, that he set out upon 
no fixed metaphysical principles whatever ; he went to werk as a solitary and 



TESTIMONY OF J. D. MORELL, OF ENGLAND. 2IS 

independent observer, to find truth ; and the method to be pursued- formec 
itself as he proceeded. As any unphilosophical thmker naturally would do^ he 
began his career by a wide observation of facts ; his system, therefore, v/a$ 
cradled in simple inductive processes ; it was analytic, or if we may use £ 
word implying authority, it was Baconian. Few perhaps who have only 
listened to vague rumors respecting: this philosophy, would imagme that i 
commenced in a collection of facts far greater than those of which the father o 
experimental science himself had any conception. 

" After passing successively through the regions of mechanics,, with the cor 
responding properties of matter ; after traversing the province of chemistry 
throwing light upon the action of imponderable agents, and suggesting the 
germ of the atomic theory, by pointing out the geometrical relations existin 
between the ultimate atoms, Swedenborg comes at length to the animal king 
dom. Here the course of his research begins to gain point and pregnancy 
The human body may be regarded as that in which all the operations of natun 
are concentrated and perfected. Here, therefore, is a microcosm — a perfec 
representation of all being — an image of the whole creation ; here consequent 
ly a theatre, upon which philosophy may achieve its noblest conquests. I: 
this department, then, we begin to see more clearly some of the scientific formu 
las or methods which, evolved, as he tells us, by intense thought and patien 
observation, are potent to cast light upon the nat;ure and uses of all things aroun 
us. First of all there is the doctrine of forms. Nature, he considered, is purel 
mechanical in all her movements ; hence every higher region in which she ap 
pears, from the mineral to the man, is represented by movement in a particula 
form. All the movements of the mineral kingdom s?re angular, as seen in th 
crystal; the next form is the circular, as seen in the bodily organization, ii 
the circulation of the blood, &c. ; the highest form is the spiral, the type of spin 
itself,* 

" In developing the physiology of the human body, another philosophicE 
principle comes clearly into view, namely, the doctrine of series. Anxious t: 
"know the real structure of the various organs of the human frame, Swedenbor 
conceived that the doctrine of monads, and of ultimate atoms, would onb 
tring him to a dark, unintelligible point, in which all form or organization 
ceased ; and that the notion of the infinite divisibility of matter would lead to t 
nonentity, from v/hich nothing could be drawn. Every organ, then, he con 
ceived, must be made up of perfect atomistic organs, each one of which ex 
presses the thing itself far more completely than the whole ; just as society i; 
made up of individual men, and each man is the most perfect pattern of hn 
manity. Everything in nature, therefore, consists of a series of perfectly organ 
ized atoms — the lungs, e. g. of innumerable microscopic lungs, the heart of nu 
merous smallest hearts, and so forth with all the other organs. 
. " Having gone through the regions of philosophy, Swedenborg came to th( 
eonfines of the province of Spirit itself. Often, he tells us, had he searched fo 
«ome light upon the nature of the soul, but as often had been disappointed, unti 



* " N. B. — TIaere are other and higher forms enumerated, which refer to the Bpiritoa 
world only." 



220 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

at length he got upon the right track, and entered the sacred chamber.* To 
gaze upon the soul by the senses was manifestly impossible ; but was it not 
possible to reason up from the material to the immaterial, and from the facts of 
the one to see into the nature of the other ? The validity of such a process was 
grounded upon the doctrine of degrees ; a doctrine, he says, which is necessary 
' to enable us to follow in the steps of nature ; since to attempt without it to 
approach and visit her in her sublime abode, would be to attempt to climb 
heaven by the Tower of Babel ; for the highest step must be approached by the 
intermediate.'t The doctrine of degrees, accordingly, is that which teaches us, 
that there is a relation or parallelism between all things in nature, from the low- 
est sphere in which it exists, to the highest. Thus the brain contains 'potentially 
the whole body, and what is essentially true of the body, is true of it. Again, 
the animal spirits which flow through the nerves, in a higher and more ethereal 
sphere, perfectly represent the more gross and obdurate human organization ; 
so also the soul itself, in a still higher region, must be a perfect type, or rather 
co-ordinate archetype, of the body. Accordingly, all nature by these degrees 
ascends from the lowest to the highest, and descends from ^the highest to the 
lowest ; so that by the aid of this philosophical formula, we can study the 
spiritual world by means of the knowledge we possess of the material.^ 

" Even in the spirit itself there are degrees. The lowest is that which is only 
cognizant of sensations ; ihe next above this is the animus, whose office is to 
imagine and desire ; thirdly, there is the mind, which understands and wills ; and 
lastly, there is the soul, whose office is to represent the universe, and have intu- 
ition of ends.§ Such is man, so far as the form of his being is concerned ; but 
where is the life, which is to animate him ? The body is dead matter, but it is 
vivified by the 5om/ — but whence^the life of the soul? It is the love of God.\\ 
God, according to Swedenborg, is perfect man. The essence and form of God 
are respectively perfect love and perfect wisdom ; the former is represented in 
the human will, the latter in the human understanding. 

" Having thus traced the philosophy of Swedenborg to its highest point, we 
may look back for a moment upon his whole method of procedure. Evidently 
it is the inductive and synthetic method combined. Commencing by observa- 
tion, his mind seized upon certain high philosophical axioms, and from them 
reasoned downwards to the nature and uses of particular objects. Perhaps it 
is the only attempt the world has seen (with the exception of the unsuccessful 
efforts of Comte) at rising upwards to purely philosophical ideas from positive 
and concrete facts. .■; 7-^ 

*' Having attained thus to the highest region of philosophy, Swedenborg 
enters the world of theological truth. For gazing upon the spiritual world, h« 
conceives we have purely spiritual senses, and a spiritual understanding. To 
most men the spiritual world is closed, because, absorbed in the lower or sensual 



* " See his 'Economy of the Animal Kingdom,* chap- iii., ou the Soul; at the com- 
mencement of which we have his own account of the method he had pursued." 
t " Ibid., chap. iii. section 210." 

J " This is an application of the doctrine of Correspondences." ' 

§ ■" Economy of Animal Kingdom^ chap. iii. sec. 6." 
jj i* Angelic Wisdom, part L" 



TESTIMONY OF J. D. MORELL, OF ENGLAND. 221 

life, they have no intuition of it. To many, moreover, who do obtain spiritual 
intuitions, there exists not an enUghtened spiritual understanding to interpret 
what the inward eye beholds. Spiritual or theological truth only becomes clear 
where both these requisites unite ; where the purely moralized or unsensual- 
ized soul gazes upon the higher world, and where the spiritual understanding 
can comprehend what is seen. 

*• Wrapt in his own deep reveries, Svvedenborg could not resist the idea that 
Cod, by a special act of his providence, had brought the scenery of the spirit- 
ual world and the relations of spiritual truth, before his own mental vision, and 
within the sphere of his intellection. With a mind fraught with long study upon 
nature and her works — with a soul habituated to deep meditation upon spi- 
ritual things — with a vivid imagination that could trace the analogies of higher 
truth in the dark windings of material forms — with a moral nature purified to 
viriue, and an exquisite sensibility of the whole system, he lost himself in the 
visions of his own inmost soul. Sometimes he seemed transported out of the 
body — then anon he would wake up to the world around him ; sometimes he 
pursued his high imaginings, unconscious of the lapse of time ; and then he 
wrote down that he had seen a vision of angels ; and thus the high truth, that 
man, when his nature is elevated, can converse with the spiritual world through 
the medium of religious faith, became transformed into a special revelation* 
that was to usher in the purified church and the latter-day glory. Swedenborg 
was assuredly a great intellectual phenomenon. Seldom, perhaps never, have so 
many systems concentrated in a single mind. He began a simple observer — 
a Baconian analyst ; from that he raised himself to the region of rational and 
ideal truth; and ended a mystic— the favored channel of a new dispensation to 
mankind. In him, sensationalism, idealism, mysticism, were united — the only 
phase through which he never passed was that of scepticism. Had he been for- 
tunate enough to complete the cycle, had a tinge of wholesome scepticism curbed 
his credulity, we might have had a great philosopher, and an active Christian re- 
former, unmarred by the enthusiasm that dared to claim the title and the honors 
of a divine and apostolic messenger."* 

" Such is Mr. Morell's account and estimate of Emanuel Swedenborg, and we cannot 
but feel reason to be satisfied with it as an advance upon what we have before seen in 
this country upon the same subject. That Swedenborg should figure in the History of 
Philosophy at all, is something new ; and although we have a sti'ong feeling that he has 
no business there, yet we would not correct this at present, because his position in these 
volumes will introduce him, to a certain extent, favorably to a new audience. 

" Our comments upon Mr. Morell's view of Svvedenborg shall be as brief as possible. 
First, it does not appear that his classing of Swedenborg among religious mystics, is found- 
ed upon any knowledge of his theology. If Swedenborg had held that there were occult 
qualities, or mysteries in theological doctrine, such a designation would be admissible, and 
it does apply most certainly to those who hold the doctrine of a faith given by invisible 
grace, and of' conversing with the spiritual world through the medium of religious faith,' 
and other the like unintelligible and unwitnessed matters ; but Swedenborg is the very only 

* " One of the best expositions of the Swedenborgian philosophy is given in the * For- 
eign Aids to Self-reflection,' by J. A. Heraud, Esq. ('Monthly Mag, No. 29). The Swe- 
denborgian Society is now in course of translating and publishing his works complete. — 
The ' Principia,' the * Economy of the Animal Kingdom,' with an admirable introduction 
by J. J. G. Wilkinson, Esq., and the * Animal Kingdom,' have already, appeared ; others 
are/orthcoming." 



222 DQCUMENTS CONCEI?NING SWEDENBORG. 

man in these ages v/ko theologically has no mysticism, but who, where others have a 
grace point or a mathematical point, sees a world where the soul is freely at home ; where 
others have a pufF of wind, sees a human spirit, &c. &c. Therefore we cannot sound the 
reason of that strange perversity which calls Swedenborg mystical. Is it that he has 
been where for a few centuries no one else has been, and given a clear account of that of 
which the most of us professedly know nothing ? 

2. "^ We object to Mr. Morell speaking of 'the frequent obscurity with which Sweden- 
borg's thoughts are expressed.' In the first place, Mr. Morell has probably read them 
only in translation. Then, as a verdict, this allegation is quite incorrect. Mr. Morell is 
himself one of the clearest headed writers we know, but for clearness, where exposition 
of doctrineis required, ^he is no more to be compared to Swedenborgthan crystal to diamond, 
Swedenborg's clearness is actually so great, as to have that living property of giving the 
o'}:^ect seen not only distinctness but added brilliancy. It is indeed the quality of a pre* 
cio«is stone — of natural truth translucent with spiritual. 

3. '** We object to the phrase — ' the differences of opinion upon many important points, 
which exist amongst his followers.' Upon those points which his own works denote to 
be most important, we do not believe there is difference of opinion among his followers. 
On those points which the metaphysicians consider important, there may indeed be the 
greatest difference, on account of their essential triviality. Thus, whether a man be a 
BerkleisKi or a Reidist, a Platonist or an Aristotelian, in his mental temperament and ten- 
dencies, is a thing doubtless very vital for metaphysics, but not so for citizenship in the 
New Jerusalem, which embraces all temperaments, and only demands the development 
of every man's better part in the rejoicing pathway of the Good and the True. 

4. *' W-e object to the phrase — ' suggesting the germ of the atomic theory by pointing 
out the geometrical relations existing between the ultimate atoms.' If there be any germ 
in the case, the atomic theory (as it is called) is itself but the germ of that noble fruit of 
doctrine of which Swedenborg held up an outlined representation in his Chemical Speci- 
mens. 

5. " ' With a mind fratight (says Mr*. Morell) with long study upon nature and her works 
—with a soul habituated to deep meditation upon spiritual things — with a vivid imagina- 
tion that could trace the analogies of higher truth in the dark windings of material forms — 
with a moral nature purified to virtue, and an exquisite sensibility of the whole system, he 
lost himself in the visions of his own inmost soul,' 

" This fine sentence constitutes one of the best specimens of anti-climax we have ever 
seen; and if logic dealt with the probable, we should say the last clause of it was to the 
greatest degree illogical. For ourselves, we humbly think that all the allegations in the 
first nine-tenths of the sentence, are reasons why Mr. Morell should reconsider his opinion, 
and ask himself whether, after all, Swedenborg did lose himself, or not ; at least, whether, 
such a loss of self was not the way to the veritable heaven and the true God. 

6. "* In him sensationalism, idealism, mysticism, wex-e united — the only phase through 
which he never passed was that of scepticism.' We object here, because we do not be- 
lieve that Swedenborg had any sensationalism, idealism, or mysticism, in him, any more 
than scepticism : be never passed through one of them as a phasis. He never proposed 
to himself that any metaphysical account of things was a centre from which to think, or 
that all together (eclecticism) were the way of truth. We doubt whether he could have 
understood any system of the kind, however popular, or rather, whether his strong resol- 
vent genius would not have detected at once the intrinsic unintelligibility of such sys- 
tems. For instance, we doubt whether he could possibly have comprehended Berkeley's 
doctrine ; that is to say, we imagine that at the first glance he would have become certi- 
fied of its mere mystification of plain things, and therefore all explanation would be im- 
possible. For where is the use of arguing about what is seen to be dov»'nright wrong, and 
to have none but an imaginary existence ? 



TESTIMONY OF J. D. MORELL, OF ENGLAND 223 

" Assuredly Swedenborg never passed through scepticism, if by that word be desig. 
nated the absurdities of Pyrrho, or Hume ; but if by 'wholesome scepticism' be meant the 
habit of requiring reasons for every thing, the habit of examining all beliefs under the 
searching light of truth, then Swedenborg had more scepticism than all the philosophers 
and metaphysicians put together. Furthermore, if doubting the wisdom and competenc® 
of the aforesaid philosophers and metaphysicians be scepticism, then had he a most whole 
some — not tinge — but satui'ation of it. But there were three things which he never 
doubted, of which the metaphysicians must always doubt, viz., Revelation, Nature, and 
Humanity, or God, Man, and the Universe. Such was his amazing ' credulity.' 

7. " With respect to Mr. Morell's closing verdict on Swedenborg, we have no right to 
quarrel with it, especially as it is not given as a deduction of reason, but as a matter of 
feeling. It is simply the manifestation of that metaphysical spirit whose very essence 
consists in judging of all things at a distance, through the colored medium of old precon- 
ceptions. Mr. More 11 implies that it is for ever necessarily a ' marring enthusiasm' 
whensoever any man ' dares to claim the title and the honors of a divine and apostolic 
messenger ;' in other words, there have been no divine and apostolic messengers in the 
world I We might feel tempted to ask, What, then, becomes of Revelation ? Mr. Morell 
seems also well satisfied, that it is impossible there should be ' a special revelation, to 
usher in the purified church, and the latter day glory.' Is he, then, a prophet, or has an 
a priori Revelation of a new kind been vouchsafed to himself? 

8. " Our greatest fault with Mr. Morell is, that he has derived his account of Sweden- 
borg's philosophy from his early, and not from his theological works. There could not be 
a heavier mistake than this. To judge of a palace from its scaffolding, of a tree by its 
leaves, or of a man by his professions and not his actions, is not more misleading than to 
judge of Swedenborg by his preparatory labors, and to take no pains to procure acquaint- 
ance with his realized ends. In the sincerest respect for Mr. Morell's head and heart, in 
afi'ectionate admiration of these masterly labors of his own, we conjure him to dismiss the 
chimera that he care judge of the theology of the New Church without previously studying 
it, or that his view of Swedeuborg's claims can be worth consideration, until he comes 
charged with a knowledge of the detailed support of these claims gathered from a humble 
perusal of the theological writings of Swedenborg. 

"This account, then, of Swedenborg which he has given, excellent though it be in 
many parts, is still susceptible of great correction, and as it now stands, is one of the 
poorest things in the book. We say this, to warn the reader that what we have quoted 
is no specimen of the rich and manifold excellence of this ' Historical and Critical Review 
of Philosophy.' 

" In the foregoing remarks we have, it is true, confined ourselves almost entirely to 
finding fault, in order that our strictures, wherever Mr. Morell can conscientiously, after 
reconsideration, admit their justice, may furnish him with the means of inserting, in his 
third edition, a still more accurate and worthy account of the illustrious and ill-used Swe- 
denborg. And we freely confess that we have felt extremely anxious that one so gifted as 
the author of these volumes — one so honest and well-intentioned, and clear sighted — should 
not, with the common herd of vulgar and unprincipled writers — 

***** Mike 

The base Judean, throw a pearl away 
Richer than all his tribe.' 

We have also felt a great motive to insinuate to him the fruitlessness of all the old methods 
of judging to the prejudice of one who comes before every sufficiently instructed mind 
with new claims to study and regard ; and above all, the fruitlessness, in this unusual in- 
quiry, of those metaphysical methods, with their sensationalism, idealism, mysticism, 



224 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

scepticism, and eclecticism, which, through so long a course of human history, have been 
the obvious intellectual means of counteracting the plainness of the blessed Gospel, and, 
in a word, of * bringing life and immortality to' — darkness." 



XLVII. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

ULRIKA, QUEEN OF SWEDEN, 

AND OF 

THE CELEBRATED GERMAN SAVAN, WIELAND, 

RESPECTING SWEDENBORG'S INTERCOURSE WITH THE SPIRITUAL WORLD. 
{From the Intellectual Repository for May, 1845.) 



As Swedenborg's writings are addressed to the unsophisticated rational mind, and not 
to the sensual, still less to " the carnal mind, which is enmity against God," he, more than 
any other writer, has showed the total inefficacy of miracles to affect the rational mind, 
and has demonstrated that nothing but the calm contemplation of truth, from the love of 
truth, can lay the foundations of a genuine faith ; and consequently from first to last he re- 
pudiated the merely external testimony of miracles as a means of moving, and of inducing 
the mind|to embrace and love genuine truth. Now although this is the testimony of Swe- 
denborg as to the total inefficacy of miracles as a means of moving the rational mind to the 
love and reception of truth, yet there are several authentic and well-established facts re- 
corded of him (as incontestably proving that he had his spiritual senses opened to a com- 
munication with the spiritual world, according to his own constant assertion from 1745 to 
1772, a period of 27 years, during which he wrote and published his Exposition of the 
Spiritual Sense of Scripture, his Doctrines of genuine Christianity, or of the New Jerusa- 
lem) and of his information concerning Heaven and Hell, or the state of man after death. 
These writings he addressed to the principal Universities of Europe, and to the bishops 
and heads of the different Churches both in Britain and on the Continent, and requested that 
they would read them and institute an examination into the ideas and doctrines they unfold 
from the Scriptures. Swedenborg, therefore, appealed to the Word of God as the only 
standard according to which his writings on all subjects of Christian doctrine should be 
judged ; — " if they speak not according to that Word it is because there is no light in them" 
— (Isaiah xiii. 20) — and no writer has ever placed the Word on so exalted a pinnacle of 
holiness, and no author has ever shown, to the defeat and dismay of the deist and infidel, 
in what its divinity consists so clearly and powerfully as Swedenborg. 

There are very many minds (whose number, however, is decreasing) who will not see 
truth with their own eyes, in its own light, but who still adhere to creeds, doctrines, and 
opinions, which are supposed to rest upon the Word as their authority and foundation, but 
which, in reality, are only based upon human tradition, and the dubious results of mere 
learning and ingenuity, and not upon the Scriptures of Truth. All such " having drunk 
old wine, do not straightway desire new, for they say the old is better" — (Luke v. 39) — 
that is, having been educated in the perverse principles of a fallen and consummated 



TESTIMONY OF ULRICA, QUEEN OF SWEDEN. 225 

Church, and having imbibed its doctrines, they will not straighUcay attend to what is new, 
although one of the divine predictions is, that the " Lord will make all things new." The 
very name of anything new gives rise to suspicion and aversion, and the outcry is, with- 
out manifesting any desire calmly to examine what is offered as new, — the outcry is, 
*' Perform miracles and we will attend to yonr claims, and believe what you state." 
Truth, however, as we have seen, disclaims and repudiates such believers, who no sooner 
experience some slight temptation than they turn their backs and flee, like the Israelites 
in the wilderness, to some idol of selfish and worldly love, either to Mammon, Bacchus, or 
Venus, before whose polluted shrines they offer the homage of their hearts. There may, 
however, among this "mixed multitude" — (Num. xi. 4) — be some, who may be so affect- 
ed by miraculous evidence, as to be induced to inquire further after the truth, and at 
length to come into the proper way of considering its claims, and its important discoveries 
to the human race. For all such, therefore, we adduce the following authentic and well- 
established facts, as proofs of Swedenborg's communication with the spiritual world :^ 

" The first fact we shall adduce is that concerning the Queen of Sweden, 
Louisa Ulrika, who was a sister of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, and 
who was married to Adolphus Frederick, King of Sweden. This princess, in 
order to test the truth of Swedenborg's assertion, that he had open and con- 
tinual communication with the world of spirits, commissioned hira to procure 
certain information from her deceased brother, the Prince of Prussia, who died in 
1758, in the 36th year of his age. Swedenborg soon after waited upon her Ma- 
jesty, at the palace, and brought her the information she required. She was 
greatly astonished, and declared to those present, that nobody but her brother 
and herself could possibly know the information in question. Now this fact 
was repeatedly confirmed by the Queen herself, who probably knew nothing of 
Swedenborg at that time as a theological writer, and who, therefore, could not 
be said to be partial to his views ; especially as it is well known that she was a 
free-thinker of the school of Voltaire, and, therefore, by no means disposed to be- 
lieve even in the existence of spirits, still less in the possibility of any man's con- 
versing with them. This occurrence the Queen declared in a great company of 
Academicians at Berlin, and it was recorded by one of the company, M. Dieu- 
donne Thiebault, a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Berlin, and 
also of the Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences at Paris, and the author of a 
work entitled ' Souvenirs de Vignt ans de Sejour d Berlin' {'Reminiscences of Twenty 
Years' Residence at Berlin'). Of this author the celebrated Wieland, who enjoyed 
a reputation on account of his extensive learning, and the powerful manner in 
which he contributed to the progress of literature in Germany, equal to that 
which Johnson enjoyed in this country, says, ' that Thiebault outweighs an en- 
tire cloud of ordinary witnesses.' 

" A prelate in Germany, named Oetinger, distinguished for his learning and 
piety, wrote to the Queen herself, inquiring whether the report in question were 
true. The Queen replied, testifying and confirming the truth of it.* 

"A writer in the ♦ Berlin Monthly Journal,' for 1788, endeavored to explain 
this extraordinary occurrence, by stating that underhand intrigue and collusion 
might have been employed in the transaction ; and thus in a most discreditable 

* See Documents, &c. &c.; and also Stilling's Theory of Pneumatology, &c., translated 
by Samuel Jackson, 1834, page 88. 



S2« DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

manner he endeavored to involve the Queen herself, and several most respecta- 
ble and trustworthy witnesses o^ her declaration, in deception and falsehood. 
Nevertheless, this same writer says in the same Journal, p. 306 : — 

"'In the meantime, I founcl an opportunity of speaking with the Queen herself, who is 
now dead,* concerning Swedenborg, and she told me herself, the anecdote respecting her- 
self and brother, with a conviction which appeared extraordinary to me. Every one who 
knew this truly enlightened sister of the great Frederick, will give me credit when I say, 
that she was by no means enthusiastic or fanatical (schtcdrmerisch), and that her entire 
mental character was wholly free from such conceits. Nevertheless, she appeared to me 
to be so convinced of Swedenborg's supernatural intercourse with spirits, that I scarcely 
durst venture to intimate eome doubts, and to express my suspicionofseci'et intrigues ; and 
when she perceived my suspicion she said, with a royal air — " Je ne suis pas facilement 
dupe," — {" I am not easily duped ;") and thus she put an end to all my attempts at refuta- 
tion.'! 

" It is not a little remarkable that this writer, after his personal interview 
with the Queen, and after he had witnessed, from her own mouth, her unsha- 
ken conviction as to the truth of the assertion she had made, and also after he 
had perceived the indignation arising in her mind when he barely intimated his 
suspicion that underhand intrigue or collusion might have been practised ; — it is 
remarkable that, after all this, he should have endeavored, in 1788, to explain 
it on the ground of secret intrigue ! If the Queen had still been living, he 
would not have dared to have thus caluminated her assertion, and therefore he 
waited till she was dead. This attempt, however, which was made in the 
Berlin Journal, to explain the occurrence on the ground of intrigue and collu- 
sion, was immediately met by a Swedish gentleman. Captain de Stahlhammer, 
who said in a letter to the said Journal — 

" * I have read with astonishment the letter (in the Berlin Journal) giving an account of 
the conversation which the famous Swedenborg had with the Queen Louisa Ulrika ; the 
circumstances related in that letter are altogether false, and I hope the author will ex- 
cuse me, if by a faithful account, which can be attested by many persons of distinction 
who were present, and are still alive, I convince him, how much he has been deceived.'^ 

** As another confirmation of the Queen's assertion. Count Hopken may be ad- 
duced, who was many years Prime Minister of Sweden, and who wrote down 
the account which was afterwards printed from his MSS. in the New Jerusalem 
Magazine, 1790, p. 153. 

" It would appear that Count Hopken was the person whom the Queen em- 
ployed to procure an interview between herself and Swedenborg, in order that 
she might test the wonderful gift of conversing with departed spirits which he 
was said to possess. 

" The particulars concerning this occurrence were also ascertained, believed, 
and confirmed by no less a personage than the celebrated German philosopher, 
Emanuel Kant, who in a letter to a lady of quality, Madame de Knobloch, dated 
Konigsberg, August 10th, 1758, declared, that after the strictest examination, no 

* She died in 1782. 

t The italics in this extract are the same as in the German. 

i See this communication entire in the Documents concerning Swedenborg, p. 122. 
(Eng. Ed.) 



•TESTIMONY OF ULRICA, QUEEN OF SWEDEN. 227 

•doubt <;oiTld be •entertained as to the truth of the three wonderful occurrences 
she had heard coticerning Swedenborg and his communication with the spirits 
of the departed. The^?-5^ of these occurrences was that relating to the Queen ; 
the second was that respecting the mislaid receipt, which the Dutch Ambassador 
at the Court cf Sweden, the husband of Madame de Marteville, had received in 
paymejrt of a certain sum, which after his death the creditor again demanded. 
This mislaid Teceipt was recovered through the information which Swedenborg 
obtained from the departed husband. It was from having heard this report, and 
from the sensation it created in Stockholm, that the Queen was chiefly induced 
to examine Swedenborg's case herself, and to ascertain by her own experience 
whether he had the power of conversing with departed spirits or not.- The 
third remarkable occurrence was that respecting the fire at Stockholm, which 
Swedenboi'g, who had recently arrived at Gottenburg from London, announced 
at the time it broke out to the company where he was ; and consequently along 
time before the news of its ravages could arrive in Gottenburg, there being about 
300 English miles distance between the two places. In two or three days 
letters arrived in Gottenburg from Stockholm, informing the inhabitants of the 
lire, stating when it began and when it was extinguished ; thus confirming, to 
the great astonishment of all, the truth of Swedenborg's announcement. Kant, 
in this letter, gives a circumstantial account of this latter occurrence, and says, 
* tlmt it is beyond the possibility of doubt.'* 

* See Documents concerning Swedenborg, &c., pages 124-133. It is important that 
the reader should know, that the dates in Kant's letter, have lately been proved by Dr. 
Tafel, of Tubingen, to be quite erroneous. The real date of the letter could not be 1758, 
because Dr. Tafel has proved from documents that cannot be disputed, that all these three 
remarkable occurrences happened after the year 1758. For, 1. The husband of Madame 
de Marteville died April 25th, 1760, consequently after the date of Kant's letter. 2. It is 
well known that the Queen put Swedenborg to the test after the occurrence about the 
lost receipt, being moved chiefly by the report of that extraordinary event to have a per- 
sonal interN-iew with Swedenborg respecting his alledged wonderful gift. And 3, the fire 
•at Stockholm took place the 19th of July, 1759, and not in 1756, as stated in Kant's letter. 
All these facts Dr. Tafel has proved in his recent •' Supplement to the Documents con- 
cerning Svvedeuborg," from Newspapers, Gazettes, and other documents which record tlie 
events of that time, and consequently the fire in question, and also the death of the Count 
de Marteville. The question now is, whether these dates were written or printed by 
mistake, or whether, in. the editing of Kant's entire works, many years after that letter 
was written, these dates were falsified of design. The fact is, that in 1766 Kant published 
a small woi-k entitled the " Dreams of a Gkost-secr illustrated hy Dreams of Metapyhsics,^* 
in which Swedenborg and the reports concerning him are the principal objects of his at- 
tack. In that work he constantly spells E. S.'s name viYong (Sckwedenierg), and proves 
that he knew nothing concerning him but from hearsay reports. Moreover, in this work 
he alludes to the anecdote respecting the Queen of Sweden, and states that it could not 
be disputed ; he also says that it occurred in 1761, which is a proof from Kant himself, that 
the date of the letter to Madame de Knobloch (1758) is incorrect. And in this work, 
page 88, the right date of the fire (1759 instead of 1756) is put. Now this letter was 
written subsequently to 1766, or after Kant's work above alluded to had appeared, and 
the proper date of it is shown to be 1768 instead of 1758. It is probable that by mistake 
the 5 might have been printed instead of 6, and that in the date of the fire, 1756, the 6 
might have crept in instead of the 9. If so, nobody is involved in the falsification of the 
said dates. This letter, however, together with the works of Kant, is said by the editor, 
Borowski, in 1804, very soon after Kant's death, " to have been strictly revised and cor- 
rected by Kant himself," and if so the suspicion cannot but arise that Kant was privy to 
the alteration in these dates. It is probable that, as his work, " The Dreams of a Ghost- 
seer illustrated by Dreams of Metaphysics^'' had excited some attention in the literary 
world, and had added somewhat to the fame of Kant, he saw, that should this letter, in 
which he expresses himself as so firmly convinced of the ti-uth of the three remarkable oc- 
currences recorded of the Queen, the mislaid receipt, and the fire at Stockholm, appear 



238 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG. 

** Swedenborg himself never wrote down any of these occurrences, because 
they would have been construed as miracles, and thus Swedenborg, who con- 
stantly protested against miracles as a means of implanting faith, would have 
been placed by his opponents in contradiction and collision with himself. But 
when he was appealed to respecting them, as by the Landgrave of Hesse-Darm- 
stadt, and by his minister, M. Venator, by Gen. Taxen, in Denmark, by C. 
Springer, Esq., Swedish Consul in London, and by M. Ab Indagine, in Amster- 
dam, he always affirmed that the occurrences were true ; but at the same time 
warned the inquirer against considering them as miracles, but only as testimonies 
or proofs that the Lord had opened his spiritual senses to have intercourse with 
the spiritual world. 

*' In respect to the Countess de Marteville and the recovery of the mislaid re- 
ceipt, this occurrence is attested by several independent witnesses ; 1. By the 
Queen of Sweden, who having conferred with the Countess about it, constantly 
affirmed the truth of it. 2. By Count Osterman,* at that time Russian Ambassa- 
dor at Stockholm, and who had, no doubt, been intimately acquainted with the 
Count de Marteville. 3. The second husband of the Countess de Martville, 

the Danish General von E , who in a letter to a clergyman requesting to be 

particularly informed as to this extraordinary occurrence, related the account as 
his wife instructed him. 4. The brother of the Countess, the Baron de Hamou. 
5. M. Robsahm, Director of the Bank of Stockholm, f These were direct and 
independent witnesses, one of whom, M. Robsahm, was a personal friend of 
Swedenborg's. The Queen highly respected him for his learning and exemplary 
conduct, and as one of the senators of the kingdom, but she could not be said to 
be so personally acquainted with him and his writings as to be biassed by par- 
tiality in his favor ; on the contrary, she was negatively disposed as to everything 
spiritual, and more so, as to the possibility of conversing with the inhabitants of 
the spiritual world, as is evident from her declaration to the learned savans at 
Berlin . ' The Queen,' says Thiebault, ' although she laid great stress on the 
truth of her recital, professed herself, at the same time, incredulous to Sweden- 
borg's supposed conferences with the dead.' 

" The celebrated Wieland, to whom we have alluded above, after having ex- 
amined the authority and the proofs on which the truth of these occurrences 
was established, without having yet seen the very important letter of the phi- 
losopher Kant, said, in addressing a friend in his work entitled Euthanasia, after 
relating the occurrence respecting the Queen of Sweden : — 



as a subsequent production, it would be construed into a gross inconsistency in the author. 
But if this was the motive which led either Kant or his editors to change the dates, why 
did they not suppress the letter altogether, since as critics, they ought certainly to have 
borne in mind, that sooner or later a critic would arise, who would detect the falsification, 
and put the matter in its true light. But however this may be, it is of great importance 
that these dates should be corrected, because when it is seen that Kant's letter appeared 
after his work on the " Dreams of a Ghost-seer,'^ ^c., in which he holds Swedenborg up 
to ridicule and contempt, it shows that whatever, after further examination, might have 
been the state of his will as to Swedenborg's writings, and claims upon the attention of 
mankind, his understanding was certainly convinced as to the truth of Swedenborg's as 
eertion, that he had open communication with spirits, and could converse with them. 
* Documents, p. 75. See also Stilling's " Theory of Fneumatology,^' p. 425. 
t Documents, p. 70-90. 



TESTIMONY OF ULRIKA, QUEEN OF SWEDEN. 229 

" ' Hei-e you have my anecdote from the world of spirits, and I hope you will have noth- 
ing to object against the credibility of a lady, such as the late Queen Ulrica was, who tes- 
tifies that she herself was the person who experienced the occurrence ; and also that you 
will have no objection to an authority like that of M. Thiebault, who having heard it from 
the mouth of the Queen herself, has related it to the whole world. By heaven! this is a 
wonderful occurrence, — indeed, it would be something quite incredible if it vi^ere not con- 
firmed by witnesses so trustworthy. The beautiful feature of the matter is, that suppose 
a-.I the tales about the apparition of spirits ia the whole world were set aside as not true, 
this single narrative by the Queen Ulrica of a fact which she herself experienced, ought to 
give us the greatest certainty as to the continuation of our life, and of our personality after 
death; — a fact which renders all the experiments which Dr. W. requires philosophy to 
make, superfluous. Swedenborg, an esteemed Swedish nobleman, in independent circum- 
stances, a mathematician, a natural philosopher, and a mineralogist by profession, who in 
these depaitments of science had acquired celebrity, and during the first fifty years of his 
life, was always este-med as a very rational man, assures us, that through the favor of God, 
the invisible world was opened unto him,and that thus he could converse face to face with the 
spirits of the departed. This man was commissioned by his Queen (in order to put him to 
the test, and in a manner in which she considered deception to be impossible) to inquire of 
her deceased brother about something, which except herself and her brother nobody could 
know. After some days Swedenborg returned to the Queen and told her, word for word, 
what she desired to know, stating at the same time, all the particulars as to the place and 
the time [where and when the event occurred between herself and her brother]. Swe- 
denborg, therefore, must, of necessity, have received his information from the spirit of the 
departed; he had consequently seen him and spoken with him; the departed, therefore, stili 
continued to live in a world invisible to us; he remembered exactly the most particular cir- 
cumstances of his former life, and he had consequently retained his entire personality J^' 
All this is certain and undeniable, in so far as the Queen and her delaration is concerned. 
'Now what can we reasonably desire to know more concerning the continuation of our life 
after death ? Could so respectable a guarantee be for a moment doubted ? It appears, 
however, that this wonderful proof [of the continuation of our life after death] did net 
suffice to heal the Queen of her unbelief, for notwithstanding all this, she at length declared 
that she did not believe that Swedenborg had had any conference with her deceased 
brother. And (says Wieland) to speak sincerely, I believe it as little as the Queen did.' 

*' Thus Wieland, notwithstanding his entire conviction that ' Swedenborg must 
have seen and spoken with the departed Prince,' declares his unbelief after all ! And 
so it is, for the most part with all miraculous evidence. As, however, there are 
some who by these undeniable fads, as both Kant and Wieland call them, may 
be led to inquire and to read the writings of Swedenborg, and thus to see, not 
from any a posteriori or miraculous evidence, but from the truths themselves 
which abound in his works, the genuine doctrines of a renovated Christianityj 
denoted by the ' New Jerusalem.' " 

, • The Italics in this extract are the same as in the German. 



230 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORS. 

XI.VIII. 

EXTRACT 

FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY 

OF BISHOP SWEDBERG,SWEDENBORG'S FATHER, 

RESPECTING THE NAMES OF HIS SONS. 
(From Dr. TafeVs Magazine.) 



The following is an extract from an unpuLlished biography of Jesper Swedberg, writ- 
ten by himself, dated April, 1729. 

" 24. Moreover, I kept myself humble, and entreated no sponsors of rank^ as 
is commonly the case [to stand for my children] ; and I shall give the reasaiis 
why I called my sons Emanuel, EUezer, and Jesper, and none, according to 
custom, after their grandfathers, or any person of the family ; (Albrecht &e 
eldest, of whom I have just spoken, was born during my travels in foreign parts, 
and his mother named him after her father), I do not find in the whole Bible 
a single example, in which children have received the names of their parents 
or forefathers. I will only mention the patriarch Jacob, and king David ; tke 
former had holy, celebrated, glorious ancestors, extensively kiiown, and he had 
twelve sons, of whom not one was called Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob. King 
David had also many sons, not one of whom he called Jesse, or David. Solo- 
mon had also many sons, none of whom he called David, Jesse, or Solomon ; 
and amongst his numerous descendants there were many kings and princes, 
and not one was called Solomon or David. This good custom, however, had, 
before the time of Christ, given way, as is evident from the history of John the 
Baptist, whom at first they wished to name after his father Zacharias (Luke i. 
59), which is a noble and significant name, —memoria Domini, that is, remem- 
brance of the Lord, in order that he might be constantly mindful of the Lord. 

" 25. Hereby however, I by no means presume to blame or to disapprove of 
those who call their children after their own names ; yet I hope and expect* 
that nobody will blame my manner (of naming children), since I have the Bible 
and the examples of many saints on my side ; and I have the full conviction 
that only such names should be given to children as awaken the fear of God m 
them, and keep them mindful of propriety and virtue ; and not, as many incon- 
siderate parents do who give improper names to their children, such as Bjore, 
Ulf, Thorheol, after the heathen god Thor, and do not think of the answer which 
the reasonable Abigail gave to king David concerning her husband Nabal, 
* Let not my Lord, I pray thee, set his heart against this man of Belial:, even 
Nabal : for as his name is, so is he ; Nabal* is his name, and folly is with him*^ 
(1 Sam XXV. 25). Emanuel, my son's name, signifies ' God with us,' — a name 
■which should constantly remind him of the nearness of God, and of that interior, 
holy, and mysterious connection, in which, through faith, ws stand v/ith our 
•good and gracious God. And blessed be the Lord's name I God has to this 
hour indeed been with him ; and may God be farther with him, until he is 

* " Nabal," in Hebrew, signifies f«lly 



TESTIMONY OF THE LATE REV. JOHN CLOWES, A.M. 231 

-eternally united with Him in His Kingdom !* Eliezer signifies ' God: is my 
help ;' and he has been graciously and friendly helped by God. He was a pious 
child, made good progress, and was called home by a happy death in the 25th. 
year of his age. The youngest son was called Jesper merely on this account, 
because he was born on the same day, and in the same hour, as myself who 
iirst saw the light of the world on the 28th August, 1653. If the name Jesper 
be written nSDT yisper (he will write), it has corresponded to the deed ; for I can 
scarcely believe that *" ly body in Sweden has written so much as I have done ; 
since, I think, ten carts ould scarcely carry away what I have written and printed 
at my own expense, and yet there is much, yea, nearly as much not printed. 
And my son Jesper had the same inequation, for he wrote much, and with 
pleasure. 

" 26. I am a Sunday-child (that is, born on a Sunday), and the mother, my 
late wife, was also a Sunday-child, and all my children are Sunday-children, 
except Katharine, who was born at Upsal on the 3d day of Easter. I have 
kept my sons to that (profession) to which God has given them inclination 
and liking ; and I have not brought up one to the clerical office, although many 
parents do this inconsiderately, and in a manner not justifiable, by which the 
Christian Church, and also the (clerical) order suffer not a little, and is brought 
into contempt. I have never had my daughters in Stockholm, where many 
reside in order to learn fine manners, but where also they learn much that is 
worldly and injurious to the soul." 



XLIX. 

TESTIMONY 

OF 

THE LATE REV. JOHN CLOWES, A.M., 

FELLOW OF TRINITY COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, AND RECTOR OF ST. JOHN'S, MANCKESTEK . 

IN FAVOR OF SWEDENBORG'S THEOLCJGICAL WRITINGS. 



We shall conclude this volume of" Documents, &c. concerning Swedenborg" by adduc- 
ing the testimony of this highly venerated clergyman. In a Memoirf written by himself, 
he gives an account of the manner irx which he became acquainted with Swedienborg's 
theological writings. After stating his views respecting the great superiority of these 
writings, he concludes thus : — 

*' The author (of this Memoir) cannot conclude his narrative, without offering 
up to the Father of Mercies his most devout and grateful acknowledgments for 

* Emanuel Swedenborg was forty years of age when this was written by his father, and 
it is plain, we think, that the cause of the old bishop's gratitude and praise to God on ac- 
count of hi* son, was, ihat he had led a pious and useful life, thus confirming what is else 
where said of Emanuel Swedenborg, that his life was a life of extraordinary dihgence and 
usefulness, and of unfeigned piety. — Ed. Int. Rep. 

t See Memoir of the late Rev. J. Clowes, A.M., Rector of St, John^s, Manchester, 8fc. ; 
written by himself. 



232 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBOUG 

the extraordinary privilege, and inestimable blessing vouchsafed him, in having 
been admitted to the knowledge and acknowledgment of the truth and import- 
ance of the doctrines unfolded by Swedenborg from the Word of God as the 
genuine doctrines of Christianity. For what worldly glory, gain, or happiness, 
can stand in competition with this — to know Jesus Christ to be the only true God^ 
and to be allowed to approach and worship Him in His Divine Humanity ; to be 
delivered thus from all perplexity as to the proper object of worship ; to see, at 
the same time, the divine volume of Revelation opened ; its interior treasures 
displayed ; its evidence and authority thus confirmed by its divine contents ; its 
apparent contradictions reconciled ; whilst all that is divine and holy, all that is 
good and true, all that is calculated to excite the veneration of intelligent beings, 
and the affection of penitent ones; all, in short, that has a tendency either to en- 
lighten the human understanding, or to purify the human will ; either to edify, 
by the bright and proud lessons of divine truth, or to soften and console by the 
sweet and tender influences of the divine love, is perceived to proceed from this 
Divine Fountain, as its only source ! Yet such is the transcendent glory, gain, 
and happiness imparted to every penitent and devout receiver of the above 
Heavenly Doctrine^. Add to this, the nearness and connexion between this 
world and another, demonstrated by such a weight of irresistible evidence ; the 
great evangelical doctrines of Faith, of Charity, of Repentance and Remission 
of Sins, of Temptation, Reformation, Regeneration, and the Freedom of the Will, 
opened, explained, and enforced, according to their edifying and important 
meaning; the nature, also, and effect of the Last Judgment, the Lord's Second 
Advent, and the descent of the New Jerusalem, presented to view in all the 
brightness and fullness of truth, and confirmed by the testimony of the sure 
Word of prophecy ; and some faint idea may then be formed of the immense 
debt of gratitude, owing at this day from all the families of the earth to their 
Heavenly Father. For who, except that Father, whose tender mercies are over all 
His works, could thus cause His light to shine in darkness for the deliverance of 
His people from evil, from error, and from destruction, and, at the same time, for 
the guidance of their feet into the ways of righteousness, truth, and salvation ? 
To his praises, and most unfeigned thankfulness on this occasion, the author is 
lastly urgent to add his ardent prayers, that the above glorious light may shine 
in every corner of the habitable globe, until the whole earth becomes that bless- 
ed tabernacle of God, which was announced to be withmen, in which ' God will 
dwell and be with them their Godj and wipe away all tears from] their eyes'* (Rev. xxi. 
3, 4)." 



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